Winds of Change
by teeceecee
Summary: On Christmas Eve, Jack unintentionally causes an accident that leaves a four year old girl an orphan. What will he do now? Can he ever make it up to her? Will she ever find out about the truth? Jack honestly didn't expect THAT to happen. "What did the Man in Moon get me into now?" Rated M for lemons (in later chapters), violence and mild swearing.
1. Chapter 1

**Story: Winds of Change**

**Rating: M**

**Pairing: Jack Frost/OC**

**Chapters: 21**

**Words: 62 294**

**Status: Complete**

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My first ever fanfiction. Review! Please and thank you.

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Freezing wind. Numbness. That's all Jack Frost could feel as he flew through the cold, sub-zero Arctic winds. Behind his numb demeanor there was an anger burning, boiling through him. He couldn't believe how North had accused him of causing a blizzard so bad that he couldn't deliver presents to all the kids in the world thus endangering children's' believe in Santa Claus, when he was nowhere near North's path at all! Jack bit back the rage threatening to well up in his throat as he recalled the looks of shock, shame and anger that graced over the rest of his fellow guardian's faces. He knew he was still relatively new at all this guardian stuff but he would never intentionally sabotage a fellow guardian's duty. The last time he did that was when he was also falsely accused of destroying Bunnymund's Easter eggs on Easter Sunday.

Jack sighed and ordered the winds to take him back home. The wind complied and soon Jack found himself on the street outside of Jamie's house. It was after midnight and the teen would be sound asleep. Jack found himself recalling to 10 years ago when Jamie and his friends had helped him and the guardians defeat Pitch Black or the Boogeyman as he was known. Despite all the anger and injustice he felt, he still managed to smile at that memory. His smile soon faded and he started thinking about how he should've tried to explain himself instead of running away and making everyone think he did start the snow blizzard. He may be Jack Frost but the snow sometimes just manifest without his knowledge.

He growled and before he could stop himself, Jack raised his staff and covered the main street with a sheet of ice, using his powers to release all the pent up emotions he felt, freezing a few trees by the roadside in the process. He gave a cry and turned the whole main street into a slippery black snake while hovering over it.

Suddenly he heard the sound of a car speeding and coming down the main street right to wear he created the sheet of ice. Before Jack could lift up his staff, the car tires skidded on the road which made the car swerve and hit a tree. Jack looked on in horror. The accident happened in just a blink of his eyes! Screams could be heard from the car with the sound of a child crying?

He quickly flew down to the car wreck and tried to help the car's occupants. Jack magic-ked the car door open and looked inside. What he saw made his stomach drop and heart go into his throat. A woman and a man were lying, face forward where their heads took the worst hit and were now lying motionless. The salty, rustic tang of blood could be smelled.

Jack then looked at the back seat and his heart leaped.

"Oh jeez, what did I do?" he muttered to himself as he reached out his arms and carried a little girl out of the wreckage.

She was crying and panicking, calling for her mum and dad. Jack sat her on the ground and tried comforting her.

"Mummy! Mummy! Daddy!" she choked and Jack's heart constricted when he saw that she was more or less the same age as Sophie, Jamie's little sister, when Jack first met her.

"It's alright, you're gonna be okay," he cooed and rocked her little body. She was still sobbing.

Slowly, one by one, house lights turned on and voices could be heard as people were woken up by the loud crash. Jamie came out of his house and saw Jack in the middle of the scene.

"Jack, what're you doing here? What the heck happened?!" Jamie demanded as he took in the sight of Jack, the little girl and the wrecked car.

"Jamie, go call the ambulance, get this people to the hospital, now!" Jack demanded. "I did something terribly wrong", he said dejectedly.

"Jack, what the-"

"Now, Jamie, hurry!" Jack rushed, his striking blue eyes filled with panic as the little girl cried louder.

Jamie nodded and quickly hurried into his house to call 911 just when people came running to help the victims.

_Victims_, Jack's heart contracted as he thought about what he has done.

"We need ambulance, medical support, two people in the front not conscious," yelled Mr. Brown, a neighbor of Jamie's. He then noticed the little girl lying on the ground near the wreckage and picked her up. Of course, he didn't notice Jack kneeling right there.

"There, there sweetheart, what's your name?" Mr. Brown asked in a gentle voice.

The little girl looked over at Jack before he nodded and smiled at her in encouragement.

"K-K-Kayla," she replied and then she started bawling again. "I want my mummy! I want my daddy!" she cried as she hid her face in Mr. Brown's face.

"Its okay sweetheart, they're gonna be safe," he said as the wail of an ambulance could be heard.

In 15 minutes, the ambulance was loaded with the injured bodies of the girl's parents as the crowd grew steadily bigger.

"Head and chest injuries, big impact, the both of them are unconscious and the woman's pulse is growing weak," the paramedic said to Mr. Brown quietly as he looked at the little girl in a mixture of pity and compassion.

"Just get them safe and for goodness sake! Be safe, the roads are slippery tonight, what with winter here…" Mr. Brown trailed of as he thought about the weather and the unlucky circumstances it brought.

In the middle of the chaos, Jack Frost stood still with his head hung in shame. Just then Jamie came from where he was helping a few men salvage what was left of the wrecked car.

"Jack…" he began to say but Jack took him by the elbow and led him to a corner of an alley so that they could speak privately.

"Man, what happened? What did you do?" the young teen asked his guardian friend as Jack looked shameful.

"I screwed up! I was so mad at North, Bunnymund, Tooth and Sandman for accusing me of starting a blizzard that caused difficulty for North to deliver Christmas presents and I just took out my anger by turning the street into a sheet of ice. I didn't realize that there were still cars driving up and now it's my fault that those people are dead! How could I've been so stupid?" Jack screamed and ran his hands through his pale white hair. "If only I went back and told them all the truth instead of running away and causing this mess, I wouldn't have killed anyone tonight! Oh goodness, I killed them…" Jack said as he dropped his staff and sank to the ground with his face in his hands.

Jamie listened to Jack's confession with wide eyes and he took a step towards Jack with his hand outstretched.

"Jack, you didn't know and it wasn't intentional. I would tell you that everything's gonna be alright but it's not Jack. So the only thing you can do now is take care of that girl and explain to North, Tooth and everyone else," Jamie said firmly with his hands on Jack's shoulders, shaking some sense into him.

Jack looked up with tortured eyes.

"How could I tell them I murdered a family? Even if they do survive, they won't come out unscathed," the Guardian of Fun retorted, looking, for the first time, 300 years old.

Jamie hardened his eyes. "Then you just have to make sure that that girl is unscathed Jack, look out for her…" Jamie trailed of as he heard his mum and Sophie calling him.

"Shoot, I gotta go, and I think I'll convince mum to let me go to the hospital tomorrow to check up on that little girl. Goodness knows she needs all the care now," Jamie muttered as he ran his hand through his hair.

Before Jamie could even take a step, Jack launched himself into the air as he commanded the winds to take him to the hospital where Kayla would be. He wasted no time in landing before he rushed into the hospital and followed the noise of a little girl crying.

"… possibly needs surgery, little or no chance of surviving at all, the impact was too much for the both of them," Jack heard a surgeon say as he came out of the operating theater, talking to the police, and Mr. Brown.

"We just contacted the little girl's grandmother; she lived nearby and would be coming to fetch Kayla later. Who knew that a family Christmas holiday could turn out this bad…" the policeman said as he looked wearily at the surgeon and his eyes landed on the plastic chairs outside of the operating theater.

Mr. Brown was there with his wife, taking holding a tear streaked face, sleeping Kayla. The little girl's brow kept on furrowing and she was whimpering in her restless sleep.

Jack took a seat on the chair next to Kayla's and stroked her hair. He felt horrible, disgusted, and loathed himself as he looked at her sleeping.

At Jack's cold touch, Kayla seemed to settle down a little and her whimpering stopped. The surgeon took one quick look at all of them before proceeding back into the theater.

Just then, the doors flew open and a petite, white haired woman came rushing in. She spotted Kayla on the seats and quickly rushed to her.

"Hello, I'm Kayla Montgomery's grandmother, Leah Montgomery," she said to the policeman and Mr. Brown. "Can someone please tell me what happened?" she replied, her eyes wide with fear and apprehension as she took the sleeping Kayla from Mr. Brown's arms and held her, seating on the seat that was occupied by Jack.

Jack scoffed as he felt her body going through him and just stood up with a scowl. The policeman seated Mrs. Montgomery on the plastic chair before he proceeded to tell her the night's events.

Mrs. Montgomery's hand flew to her mouth. "Will they be alright? How bad are they? Oh gosh, poor Kayla…"

Before the policeman could open his mouth, the surgeon walked out, with a look of defeat on his face.

Mrs. Montgomery knew the answer before he even said anything.

"I'm sorry," the surgeon said quietly. "We tried, but the injuries were too much…" he trailed off.

There seemed to be a moment of dead pan silence before Mrs. Montgomery got up, carrying Kayla and said in a voice full of unshed tears "I-I don't know what to say, but just thank you for the help."

"It was the least we could do," Mr. Brown replied while blowing his nose with a handkerchief as his wife held onto his arm with tears in her eyes

"I'm sorry this happened Ma'am, what's more on Christmas Eve," the policeman said quietly.

Mrs. Montgomery nodded, carrying her granddaughter and walked back to her car. Jack also got up with a remorseful look on his face as he followed them. I must not cry for the sake of the girl, she chanted. Oh, poor Kayla, she thought as tears fell from her eyes. She looked through the rearview mirror to see Kayla slowly waking up and yawning.

Jack sat beside her as she started to stir, holding his staff in one hand while taking the young girls hand in his. Kayla woke up and smiled at Jack before realizing that she was in her Nana's car.

"Nana?" the little girl asked.

Mrs. Montgomery quickly stopped the car and looked back at her granddaughter. "Yes, love?" she asked Kayla gently.

"Where's mummy and daddy? Why aren't they here with us? Am I spending Christmas at your house?" Kayla inquired with such childlike innocence that Jack and Mrs. Montgomery's hearts constricted.

"No, Kayla dear, I'll tell you when we reach home, okay?" Mrs. Montgomery started her car and drove again.

"Okay," Kayla replied and looked up at Jack. Jack smiled at her and squeezed her little hand in his ice cold ones.

"Who're you?" Kayla whispered, as she looked up at Jack. But Jack just smiled and shook his head, as if to say_, later._

The car soon reached the house and Mrs. Montgomery took Kayla out and took her to the living room. Jack followed them as they reached the house and slipped right through it, seating on the couch, next to Mrs. Montgomery and Kayla.

Mrs. Montgomery took a deep breath, sat Kayla on her lap and stared telling her the truth.

"Kayla, do you remember what happened when Lulu your doggie wasn't around?" she asked and Kayla nodded. "Do you know where she went to?" Mrs. Montgomery asked gently.

"Mummy said she went to heaven to be with God, the angels and all her other doggie friends," Kayla replied, feeling slightly confused to the turn of the conversation.

Mrs. Montgomery took another deep breath as she wiped a lone stray tear away. "Well honey, mummy and daddy are there to now, that's why you'll be celebrating Christmas with me. They've gone to heaven now," she said as she finally broke down and sobbed.

Kayla looked at her with horrified, brown eyes. "You mean they won't come back anymore?" she asked, her voice rising up two octaves.

"Yes, baby girl, they won't," Mrs. Montgomery sniffed as her small frame was wrecked with silent sobs.

Kayla momentarily forgot about Jack, who was sitting there with a few tears falling from his face, cold as the deep pit of self loathing he felt.

She sniffed and cried hugging her grandmother as the both of them let out their sadness, holding each other's trembling bodies that were wrecked with sadness.

"Mummy, daddy, no, mummy," Kayla kept on chanting as she cried even more.

The both of them cried themselves out until they were exhausted. Mrs. Montgomery then carried Kayla to the guest room where she wiped her tears of and tucked her in bed.

She closed the door as Jack silently stepped in. He noticed how dwarfed the girl looked in that giant of a bed as he sat down on it, by her side.

"What's your name?" Kayla's voice cut through Jack's dwelling.

"My names Jack, Jack Frost," he replied with a smile on his face.

"How come my Nana can't see you, and why do follow us?" she asked, sounding accusing.

"Woah, slow down there buddy, first of all, no one can see me and second…" he hesitated, not sure how to tell a 4 year old girl that he had caused the accident that killed her parents. "I'm the Guardian of Fun! I always try and comfort kids when they're sad, that's why" he replied with a huge smile on his face.

Kayla laughed as she looked as his expression but she quickly turned sad. "I'm sorry Jack, I can't be happy now, my mummy and daddy are in heaven, and they won't come back to see me, they're… They're gone," she said with a sniff as tears began falling down again.

_Darn it! I didn't mean to make her feel guilty! Can't you do anything right Frost?_ Jack mentally scolded himself.

"It's okay, it's okay, I didn't mean it, I'm here to comfort you not to make you feel guilty," he replied in a cheery tone as he took Kayla into his arms.

"Geel-ty?" Kayla asked with a frown on her cute face. "What's that mean?" she asked, momentarily distracted.

Jack laughed a warm laugh as he pulled the covers closer to her. "You know, that feeling you get when you steal cookies that you can't take and not tell anyone?" Jack said as he pulled a mock stern expression. Kayla's face then turned into a guilty expression.

"Oh, that feeling," she said.

"Aha, I knew it, you did do something like that, but it's okay, I think I can rustle up my buddy Santa Claus to let you of the naughty list," Jack said in a teasing tone as he tickled her sides.

Kayla gave a small shriek and laughed, dodging his hands. She then grew slightly serious as she took his hand in hers and memorize it.

"What're you staring at little ankle biter?" Jack asked in his best Australian accent, mimicking Bunnymund, which honestly, was a really bad one.

"Why are your hands so cold? Did you forget to put your gloves on?" Kayla asked accusingly as she turned to look at Jack.

Jack gave a little laugh as he wrapped his arms around her. Instead of answering, Jack conjured up a delicate snowflake on the palm of his hand and showed it to her.

Kayla gasped as tried grabbing the snowflake and it disappeared. She then grew disappointed. Jack conjured up a few snowflakes and let it fly across the room, over the both of them as he saw her giggle and stick out her tongue to catch stray snowflakes.

"Snow!" Kayla said and then she remembered a book her mum gave her during her birthday which told stories of all imaginary people and then she remembered something else.

"You're Jack Frost? The old man who creates snow? And ice?" she guessed as she turned around to look at Jack. Jack had to stifle a laugh at her description.

"Yup, I'm Jack Frost alright, minus being an old man," Jack fake groans.

Kayla laughed again but soon stifled it with a yawn.

Jack smiled kindly at her as he tucked her in and swept her hair out of her face.

"Hey, can I stay here tonight? I don't wanna go back to my guardian duties," Jack said as he looked with hopeful eyes at Kayla. He didn't know why but he wanted to stay here and keep her companied.

"Okay, but first you have to show me more tricks," Kayla demanded as she folded her arms through the blanket.

Jack gave a mock exasperated sigh. "Whatever her royal princess wants, the court jester will provide," he said as he got up to touch the window. Frost tendrils curled on the glass and Jack traced a picture of a puppy on the window. He blew on it and the figure rose from the window, prancing around the room and disappearing with a trail of snowflakes around it.

The image had such a magical effect on Kayla that she was stunned into silence. She then turned to Jack with a huge grin on her face.

"Okay, you can hang out with me," Kayla said as she scooted of the bed to give Jack more space.

Jack bowed and playfully retorted "Thank you, fair princess; the court jester shall sleep now".

Kayla just smiled as Jack wrapped his arms around her gently. Before she fell asleep, Kayla muttered to herself. "Daddy always held me in his arms when I was sad," she said and with one lone tear, she fell asleep, too tired from the day's events to even think.

Jack sat up and watched her innocent face smooth into a deep sleep as he brushed her brown hair out of her face. Just then, he saw a trail of golden sand coming in through the window to form over Kayla's head, molding itself into a slide and water park. Jack smiled as he looked at the image and vowed to keep nightmares of losing her parents away from her.


	2. Chapter 2

This chapter deals with Jack trying to get around his guilt and asking various people for advice since he doesn't know what to do about Kayla's situation. Review, review, review!

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Jack got upped a stretched, knowing that his fellow guardians must be anxiously waiting for him. Suddenly, he felt a 1000 years old. Just then a sound could be heard from the chimney and Jack knew that North should be here, delivering the presents to every children's' house before tomorrow. He suddenly felt ashamed of not explaining himself and just running of like that.

He made his way softly downstairs as he caught North coming out from the chimney, a smaller bag in his hands.

"Jack! What're you doing here? You gave me a scare," North said in a soft voice, thick with his Russian accent.

"Sorry… Oh, North, I'm so sorry for running away like that," Jack said as North put down his bag and wrapped an arm around Jack's shoulders.

"Jack, its okay, I would be mad to if someone wrongly accused now would I? I'm sorry too, for leaving you to deal with the rest of them, instead of clearing things up before I left. I knew that that blizzard wasn't your fault, Jack, you're not the old you anymore," North said with a gentle look on his face.

The gentle look on North's face was enough to make Jack feel even worse than before. He got out of North's reassuring hug as he braced himself to tell the bad news.

"North, I did something horrible…" Jack continued his tale, never censoring anything out, he admitted that the ice sheet was an accident and not intentional. He also said he now felt like a murderer. "Jeez, I never meant any harm, and now look what happened!" Jack cried softly in anguish, all of his self guilt landing on him like a ton of bricks.

North just listened with an impassive face. "You accidently killed a family?" North asked his tone even.

Jack just nodded as he closed his eyes, waiting for the onslaught of North's anger, to tell him what a horrible person he was and that he didn't deserve to be a guardian. Instead of saying all that, North surprised him.

"I think we need to hold a meeting with the rest of them first, Jack and see what we can make out of this," North said, his voice still betraying no emotion.

Jack just nodded as North summoned the rest of the guardians.

Just as they were about to step out of Mrs. Montgomery's window into the night, North took out a big red wrapped present out of his bag and put it under the Christmas tree.

"It's not much but I hope it at least puts a flicker of happiness in that poor child," North said softly and stepped into the chimney, back to his sleigh. Jack used the window instead and in a flash he was standing on the roof with North.

They didn't have to wait long before the arrival of the other guardians as one by one they all filed in. Bunnymund was the last one as the group looked on towards the ground, where a hole suddenly opened up from the ground.

"Damn it, I hope they didn't set me up, those black eyes," Bunnymund muttered as he looked around for them and nearly shrieked with shock as he suddenly sound his friends behind him. Ah, the perks of being able to fly, Jack thought with a small smile on his face as the Sandman doubled up in silent laughter.

"Alright, alright, what's happening? Why'd you call us here North, you could've met us at your place you know," Bunnymund said with a suspicious look on his face.

Tooth nodded as she asked, "What's the problem North? Why'd you call us all here?"

North glanced at Jack. No way am I breaking this news to them.

Jack sighed.

"Guys, I'm the problem here, I did something terrible," Jack admitted.

Bunnymund just snorted as he retorted sarcastically," Forgot to create another blizzard, mate?"

North, Tooth and Sandy all fixed Bunnymund with a hard stare.

"Let the kid continue his story," North admonished him.

Jack took a deep breath. "Okay, North called you guys here to tell you guys that I've messed up, I've accidently killed a family," Jack finished and looked up to find the other guardians with shock written on their faces.

"I was so mad that you guys accused me of doing something I didn't that I took my anger out by freezing the streets and everything around it. I didn't know that there were still cars up here and one skidded on the ice I created and smashed into a tree. The parents both died in the hospital but the kid's alive, though shocked and scared," Jack finished as a few tears escaped his ice cold blue orbs at the thought of what he had done.

Tooth gasped. "Oh no, Jack…"

"Mate, what the…? How could you've been so careless?" Bunnymund asked as his face contorted into shock.

Sandy just had exclamation marks formed all over his head.

"It was an accident guys, I didn't mean, nor could I have stopped it, the accident happened too fast," Jack said and he resisted the urge to fall to the ground and puke.

There was silence for a while. Tooth was the first to speak up.

"Guys, we can't hold it against him, it was also partially our fault that we accused Jack of something he didn't do. Plus he didn't know that his actions would have such dire consequences," Tooth said as she nervously flitted around each guardian.

"He didn't know? He didn't know?! Mate, you're a guardian, you guard people no matter what, and not let your emotions take over and cause something that could hurt someone like that. Not hurt, but kill them! Think before you act Jack, use your frost up brain for kangaroo's sake," Bunnymund said in a livid tone as he looked at Jack.

Jack cringed from Bunnymund's stare as he knew what the Guardian of Hope was saying was true. He suddenly felt smaller than dirt.

Everybody then turned to look at North. They all may have been guardians but ultimately, it's North that should decide what was to happen.

"Bunnymund and Tooth is right, it was our fault for accusing you, but you should have been more careful Jack, you can't just go around freezing things if you feel angry," North said, a sudden look of compassion graced his face. "Never in my life have I seen a guardian's actions like this," North said in a semi amused tone.

Jack turned to Sandy for something, help, advice, anything, but the little golden man just shook his head and a sad smiley formed on his head.

"Jack, you can't undo what happened, but for once, you could help the child by being there with her. Be her personal guardian, you owe it to her," North said as he gave Jack a sad smile.

Jack looked at the varying looks of compassion on his fellow guardian's face. Even Bunnymund looked weary like he wanted nothing more than to pretend this conversation never happened.

"Can we go meet her?" Tooth asked as she stole a glance to North and Jack, a look of compassion and sadness on her beautiful features.

Jack nodded. "She fell asleep just minutes ago, I think its okay for us to visit her," Jack said.

He led the way to Kayla's bedroom window, eased it open gently and stepped in. A gust of cold wind ran through the room as the other guardians stepped in and Bunnymund closed the window.

The five guardians stood over Kayla's bed, watching her little frame curl up against the sudden gust of coldness, her brown hair splayed across the pillow and her delicate porcelain face scrunched up in an adorable way as her dream played out in her mind.

"She's beautiful," Tooth cooed as she glanced over at Jack with small smile on her face.

"Yeah, and she loves my snow tricks too," Jack said in a soft tone as he recalled Kayla's happy face at seeing snow falling over them.

North then spun around to face Jack. "Jack, make a guardian promise that you'll always take care of this child no matter what, be with her, as a brother or friend, anything she needs," North said with a hard glint in his eyes.

"I promise, I'll do whatever it takes to be there for Kayla," Jack nodded solemnly.

"The guardian promised is sealed," North said. "Now let's us all go home and get everything sorted out," he said in a weary tone as everyone took their turns climbing out of the window. Everyone, except Jack.

"Jack, sweetie, are you coming?" Tooth asked in a worried tone as Bunnymund, Sandy and North looked on at him.

Jack just shook his head. "It's okay, I'll stay here tonight with Kayla to take care of her," Jack said with a smile on his face as he looked at the rest of them.

The rest of the guardians just nodded as they left Jack alone to be with Kayla. Bunnymund gave him an apologetic smile before he jumped out the window. Jack reciprocated the smile as he turned to close the window and lay on the bed next to Kayla.

When she felt a weight lay on the bed next to her, Kayla turned around and hugged Jack's body closer to hers. Jack was slightly alarmed at never being so close to a child before that he was momentarily stunned. He then recovered and wrapped his arms around her as he stroked her hair and felt a peace he didn't feel at all throughout the whole day. Jack found it amusing that as an immortal, he couldn't sleep but he still felt tired. Like his energy was drained and he had to replenished it.

Jack sat in silence, pondering over the day, for what felt like a few hours. Unbeknownst to him, night had already turned to dawn as the first weak rays of sunlight filtered through Kayla's window. Christmas morning, Jack thought as he looked at the little four year old girl asleep in his arms. She hadn't moved at all throughout the whole night as she still clung through his jacket, head on his shoulder. He wondered how she would react for today. He gave her a warm smile as he felt her stirring. The first thing Kayla saw when she opened her eyes was Jack smiling at her. She smiled back at him as she rubbed her eyes and asked him for the time.

"7.00 sharp," Jack replied.

Kayla nodded as she gave a small yawn, and then looked as if she just remembered something. "Oh! Merry Christmas, Jack," she said as she grinned at him but it slowly faded away.

"I miss my mummy and daddy, Jack," she said as she held onto his arms and tears fell down her face.

"I know you do Kayla, I know," he said as he gave her a reassuring hug as she cried into his shoulder. He held her until her crying subsided and turned to hiccups.

Jack then turned to look at her. "Look, I know this way not be the best time, but just for today only, why don't you try to enjoy Christmas and try not to be too sad, Santa wouldn't want all his efforts at getting you a perfect gift go to waste now wouldn't he?" Jack said as he grinned at her.

"Okay," Kayla said, only half certain as she wore her sweater and followed Jack out of the room. He held out his hand for her to take and was amused at the thought of how he had to bend his frame a little so that he could be in line with her.

When they approached the living room, Kayla gave a surprised gasp. Jack also was momentarily shocked. Red tinsel was hanging from every beam in the ceiling; the fireplace was decorated with snowflakes and huge stockings filled with presents. Holly's were decorated around the room, giving it a warm, Christmas-y feeling. But what was most astonishing was a beautifully decorated Christmas tree in the middle of the room. There were all sorts of different presents under the tree, with the most amusing being Easter Eggs.

_Bunnymund_, Jack thought as he gave a little chuckle. It seems that the rest of the guardians were doing their best to make Kayla and her grandmother feel a little bit better this Christmas.

Kayla was still standing wide eyed. "Woah… Jack, did you do all this?" she asked and looked at him through excited eyes.

Jack knelt down so that his face was leveled with hers. He shook his head. "I didn't, but I think the rest of them did. Look! You even got Easter Eggs from the Easter bunny," Jack said as he pointed to the Christmas tree. "Kayla, we guardians always try our best to help out a child in need, it's what we do," he said, to make her understand.

Kayla nodded and looked around the room with unconcealed glee. She then ran to the fireplace, taking in the filled stockings. "Wow! Can I open them already?" she asked in excitement.

"Yes dear, of course you can," said the voice of Mrs. Montgomery as she appeared in the hallway. Jack froze in shock until her remembered that adults couldn't see him and that Jamie, Sophie and Kayla were the only mortals who could. He relaxed and let out a small laugh at his silliness.

Kayla ran to her grandmother to give her a hug. "Merry Christmas Nana," she said as she wrapped her arms around Mrs. Montgomery's waist.

"Merry Christmas to you to dear, now hurry up and open your gifts," Mrs., Montgomery said as she directed Kayla to the pile of gifts under the tree.

Kayla looked towards Jack. "Let's go open some gifts," she said in glee and tore open her first present 15 minutes and 4 presents later, Kayla was done as her face flushed a happy glow, one that can only be brought by great joy.

All the while, Jack just sat patiently beside her, running some comments about the various gifts. "And that toy doll was painted by a yeti in the North Pole, he always gets the colors wrong," Jack said in an amused tone as he watched her face light up in curiosity.

"A yeti did this? I thought that elves made the gifts," she said as her forehead creased into a thoughtful look.

"No they don't, the elves were just made to believe that they do make those gifts," Jack chuckled as he took in her look of amazement.

"Wow… Have you been to Santa's workshop before?" she asked, her eyes as wide as brown discs.

"Yup, I tried breaking in a few times but I never got passed them yetis. Only when they wanted to choose me as a guardian did they invite me to Santa's workshop. By shoving me into a bag and tossing me into a magic portal," he rolled his eyes at that memory.

"Really? Santa never scolded the yetis for doing that to you?" Kayla asked in a disapproving tone at the thought of someone hurting her new friend.

"On the contrary, it was Santa's idea," Jack said. He laughed as he took in her surprised expression. Kayla then got over the shock and laughed along with Jack.

"Kayla, honey, what're laughing at? And who're you talking to?" Mrs. Montgomery asked as she poked her head out of the kitchen.

"I'm talking to my friend, Jack Frost Nana," Kayla replied in an innocent tone.

Mrs. Montgomery just gave a small smile and shook her head. "Sure, sweetie, make sure that Jack Frost doesn't really get in, you might catch a cold. Now, go clean this place up and get ready for brunch, I made waffles," Mrs. Montgomery said with a smile as she went back into the kitchen.

"Oops," Jack said as he looked at Kayla with a huge grin on his face.

Kayla just laughed before her expression turned serious. "She can't see you?" she asked.

Jack shook his head. "Not many people can see me. So far it's only you, Jamie, his little sister, Sophie and his friends that can see me," Jack said.

"Oh… Were you ever lonely?" Kayla asked as she tried wrapping her head around that new bit of information.

Jack gave an internal sigh. Too deep, to fast, he though as he just gave her a small shrug. Just then Kayla's grandmother called her over for brunch. Before she left, Jack called her and told her he needed to go and fulfill his guardian duties and will be back tonight. He also wished her a Merry Christmas.

"Merry Christmas to you to, Jack, see you later," she said as she gave him a quick hug and ran to have her brunch.

Jack just smiled at her, as he turned and flew out through the chimney. North would have a field day if he saw how Jack had to leave. Jack just gave a small chuckle as he let the wind take him wherever he wished to go. He then commanded the wind to take him to Asia as he flew with the speed of light pass the mountains and rivers in Tibet, across the Great Wall of China, and over the city of Shanghai. He then stopped to sit on a high building as he contemplated everything that had happened. He then realized that he needed to talk to someone, anyone about the conflicting emotions he felt throughout the whole day.


	3. Chapter 3

_Ha, would you look at that? A Guardian of Fun, contemplating his conflicting emotions and needing_ _someone to talk to,_ Jack thought sarcastically as he realized how much the course of his existence had changed with just one small mistake.

He then commanded the winds to take him back to the small town of Burgess outside of Jamie's house. He then found himself at the front door of Jamie's house just as Jamie himself was leaving out the front door.

"Hey, Jack!" Jamie called out to him. "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas to you too Jamie. Where're going?" Jack asked curiously.

"I'm just heading over to my aunts place? Why?" Jamie asked, curiosity taking over his features.

Jack just slumped his shoulders. "Oh, it's alright, I didn't mean to keep you from anything," Jack said, trying his best to keep the petulant tone out of his voice.

Jamie gave an inward sigh. He could be so morbid sometimes. "Is this about Kayla?" Jamie asked, slipping his gloves on.

Jack just sighed. "Yeah, it's about her. Jamie, she cried for a solid one hour this morning when she thought about her parents. I know that she feels sad and everything, but I just feel so useless cause I don't know how to comfort her. I know how to make kids laugh, not what to tell them when they start bawling," Jack admitted, leaning on his staff as the revelation of his conflicting emotions came upon him.

Jamie just stared at Jack with a thoughtful look on his face.

"C'mon bro, let's sit and talk," Jamie said, indicating to the porch stairs.

Jack sat down on the first step as he was struck by how much Jamie had matured over the past few years. Guess that's what happens when you mix around with immortals too much, Jack thought.

"First things first, from experience, nobody knows how to truly comfort somebody when they're in pain. Even I don't know how to comfort my friends if any of them go through a sad experience, like a fight with their parents, for example. But the most that I can do is to just be there for them and lend them a shoulder and sometimes a hand when they need it. Just let them heal in their own pace," Jamie said as he looked over at Jack with compassion in his eyes.

Jack nodded but still looked unsure. "Jamie, if I could change everything and I mean everything, I would have stopped my actions from that night, I feel like an arse," Jack ranted. Jamie just sat there in silence. He knew his frost friend needed to rant and gain some perspective on this mess that he had created, so he just kept silent.

The two friends were quiet for a while.

"What did you say to your sister, that night on the lake? What did you tell her?" Jamie asked softly, knowing this was a sensitive topic for Jack.

Jack froze and stared at Jamie, trying to figure out the turn of this conversation. "I told her that everything was okay, we're just gonna have a little bit of fun and to trust me," Jack said stiffly, remembering that fateful day where he had saved his sister, but drowned in the frozen lake. Jack shivered.

"Exactly," Jamie said.

"Huh? I don't get it? What do you mean exactly?" Jack asked, confused.

"Jack, you are the Guardian of Fun. You protect a child's sense of freedom and love for life. Use your center to solve this, show Kayla that life can't all be morbid and depressing, show her that she can trust you and that everything will be okay," Jamie explained, running his hand through his brown hair.

Jack just twirled his staff as he considered this.

"You mean to say that I should gain her trust, keep her safe and protected, and reassure her that everything will be okay?" Jack asked slowly. Jamie nodded.

Jack pondered over it for a second and the next, his face split into his signature pearly white grin. "How'd you become so smart all of the sudden, huh?" Jack asked teasingly, sounding a lot like his old self.

Jamie flushed with indignation. "I helped you out and this is what I got? A question about how I got smart?" Jamie asked with a roll of his eyes. "Alright, I always ask Tooth for advice about girls and how to understand them, okay?" Jamie stated, his face turning a different shade of red.

Instead of teasing him like Jamie knew Jack would, he just stared at him with a look of mock horror on his face. "Dude! I thought that you always came to me for advice. Now you're asking some chick about how to get girls when I know just how? I thought we were brothers…" Jack mock whined as he pouted.

"Uhm, no offense Jack, but if you hadn't noticed, you don't really have lots of girls around you and what's more, Tooth is a girl and therefore know more about girl emotions then, er, you," Jamie finished with an apologetic look on his face.

Jack scoffed. "Hey, at least I used to interact with lots of girls last time," Jack said. "Well, 300 years ago," Jack said under his breath. "Oh wow, I seriously need to date someone," Jack said in fake shocked tone.

Jamie laughed. "Yeah, and convince them, you're not a vampire what with being pale, flying and having white hair," Jamie said in a teasing tone, ruffling Jack's white hair to emphasize his point.

"Well, haven't you heard, Jamie Bennett, vampires are all the rage now," Jack said as he flicked his silver white hair and gave an exaggerated seductive look.

"Eww, save that for Tooth, Jack, or some other poor girl," Jamie complained as he avoided being poked in the ribs by Jack.

The two friends lapsed into laughter for what felt like minutes. The laughter died down when they heard Jamie's mom calling for him.

"Argh, I completely forgot about Aunt Sarah's Christmas party," Jamie said and pulled a long face.

Jack laughed at the thought of Jamie spending the whole day cooped in his aunt's house, probably stuck wearing an argyle sweater his grandma made.

"Have fun, dude," Jack said as he got up and pulled the younger boy along with him.

"You too, buddy, remember what I told you okay? Now go, spread the Christmas frost around as I go spend the whole day at my aunt's house, probably wearing an ugly argyle sweater Nana made," Jamie groaned.

Jack chuckled as his thoughts were confirmed. "I will Jamie. Oh, don't worry, at least it'll be for the sake of the Christmas spirit," Jack laughed as the two friends said their goodbyes and Jack flew off to visit North.

North happened to be in his study when Jack arrived.

"Hey, Phil, do you happen to know where North is?" Jack asked as the giant yeti he knew personally made a grunting noise and motioned to the study.

"Thanks, dude," Jack said as he flew off to North's study and knocked on the solid wooden door.

"Come in," North said in his gruff Russian accent.

Jack pushed the door open to find North, occupied with his new ice figurine, a toy race car that he was crafting from a chuck of ice. North turned around to find Jack standing, slightly awkward by the doorframe.

"Jack! I didn't expect you to be here. I thought you were supposed to be causing a snow storm right now in Ireland?" North asked, concern etched on his rounded face.

Jack just shrugged. "I figured let them have a White Christmas, instead of a snow blown one," Jack said as he gave North a smile.

North laughed his great, belly laughter that would make anyone smile.

"Good, good, it is the holiday season anyway," North smiled benignly. "But what really brings you here, Jack?" North asked, a fatherly expression of concern on his face, again.

Jack gave a sigh. "About last night, are the other guardians still mad at me? Are you guys considering kicking me out? I know I don't do much but I still wanna be responsible for some of the kid's happiness. I like my job," Jack blurted out in one breath, waiting for North's answer. Truth be told, he was expecting the worse.

North just stood up, a kind expression on his face. "Jack, my boy, sit down, I need to clear some things up with you first," North said as he gestured to one of the armchairs in his study.

Jack sat down as North sat on an armchair beside him. "Look, Jack, first of all, I just wanna say how proud I am that you are finally embracing your guardian duties and learning to have some responsibility for children," North started as Jack nodded.

"Also, about last night, honestly all of us were shocked that something so careless could have happened like that, but we all know, that no one is perfect. Even Man on the Moon isn't perfect and he chose us to protect the innocence of the Earth's children!" North emphasized as he looked carefully at Jack.

"That being said, none of our actions has ever caused the loss of a life, though Bunnymund nearly made a helpless blind woman nearly fall down on of his holes before," North said and he chuckled at the thought of that memory. Jack himself tried to suppress a chuckle at the thought of Bunnymund's reaction to finding an old, blind woman in his underground home.

"The question is, have you repented? Are you willing to right your wrongs? If so then, what's the point of being mad at things in the past? We can't undo it, unless you're Father Time, but even he can't do that. Look at the bright side of this, Jack, you may have caused that girl to lose her parents but you gained a child who believes in you, and will always believe in you. It may be a selfish thought, but that's the good side of this," North said as he put a hand on Jack's shoulder.

Jack nodded as he processed North's word. "Well, it does feel awesome to have someone who believes in you though I think you know that feeling very well," Jack said.

North nodded. "All in good time Jack, you weren't picked by Manny for nothing. There has got to be something that you have to do," North added kindly.

"Thanks, North, on clarifying everything for me," Jack said as he stood up. North followed suit as he silently admired how much Jack had grown and embraced his powers and duties.

Jack waved goodbye as he flew out of North's window and back home to Burgess to check on Kayla. When he arrived there, evening had already given in to the inky black that was night. Jack landed and roamed around the streets, frosting the ground with his presence. He made his way to Mrs. Montgomery's house just in time to see a middle age man exiting the Montgomery's house. He was tall, slightly built with graying blond hair. He was wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase.

Jack managed to slip into the house when the door was ajar as he heard Mrs. Montgomery wishing the man a Merry Christmas. Jack spotted Kayla sitting on the couch, toy doll in her arms as she waited for her grandmother.

"Hey, Jack," Kayla greeted him as she moved to make space for him on the couch.

"Hi, Kayla, who was that guy?" he asked.

Kayla scrunched up her nose as she tried to recall that man's name. "He's Mr. Thompson, uhm, something Nana called a lawyer, I think?" Kayla guessed and shrugged just as Mrs. Montgomery appeared and took a seat beside Kayla, sitting through Jack's body again.

Jack got up and grumbled as Kayla gave a small giggle. Mrs. Montgomery looked at her but Kayla just shook her head.

"So, sweetie, I've already discussed with Mr. Thompson about your mummy and daddy's will, plus an arrangement for their funeral," Mrs. Montgomery said, watching Kayla's reaction carefully.

"What's a will?" Kayla asked, hugging her doll closer. Jack too was curious as he edged closer to hear what Mrs. Montgomery had to say.

"A will is some sort of a list that your daddy and mummy made when they were younger. It contains stuff that they wish to give other people when they… Passed away," Mrs. Montgomery said softly.

"Oh," Kayla said, looking slightly apprehensive.

"Something else, he also had to make arrangements for your mummy and daddy's funeral," Mrs. Montgomery said her eyes gazing sympathetically at Kayla. Kayla nodded. She understood what a funeral meant.

*Flashback*

"_Mummy! Lulu won't wake up, I tried shaking her and spraying water at her face but she just wouldn't wake up," cried Kayla as ran to her mother for help, her face streaked with tears._

_Her mother looked up at her with concerned brown eyes, so identical to Kayla's. "Alright honey, let's go check it out and see," her mum replied as she picked Kayla up and went to check in Lulu's bed._

_Her mother checked the small dog's pulse and tried shaking it awake. The dog didn't stir. "Honey, I think… That Lulu passed away," her mother said quietly._

"_Passed away?" Kayla sniffed. "What do you mean she passed away?" _

_Kayla's mother tried to find the right words to explain to her daughter. "It means she went up to heaven, to spend time with God, Jesus and all her other doggie friends who are also there," her mum said as she referred to Bess, the neighbor's small poodle who had also passed away a few months back._

_Kayla nodded as two big fat tears rolled down her face. Her mother just gathered her in her arms._

"_C'mon honey, let's wait for your daddy to come back so that we can all give Lulu a proper funeral burial," her mother said as she balanced the little girl on her hip._

"_What's a funeral? " Kayla asked, surprised._

"_It's something like a ceremony where we have a burial to respect a person who passed away," Kayla's mum explained to her gently._

_Kayla nodded as she understood._

_That evening they did just that when her father came back from work. They put Lulu into a shoebox, dug up a hole for her in their backyard and put the carcass of Kayla's beloved dog into the hole before burying her. _

_Kayla had never felt as sad as she was then, missing Lulu and wishing she were here._

*Flashback ends*

"Okay, Nana, I understand, we need to dig up a hole and put mummy and daddy there don't we?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

Mrs. Montgomery just nodded.

Kayla sighed as her small shoulders slumped. "Do I have to do anything, Nana?" she asked.

"No dear, I'll handle everything, now go off to bed, it's already way passed your bedtime," her grandmother said as she ushered Kayla to her bedroom. Kayla looked over her shoulder, finding for Jack. Jack caught her eye and followed her.

When they both were in Kayla's room, Kayla turned to Jack, with a smile on her face. "Jack! What're you doing here?" Kayla asked as she sat by her bed, Jack followed suit too.

Without even giving him a chance to speak, Kayla said, "We're having the funeral for mummy and daddy by the end of this week, Nana told me more stuff but it was too hard to remember so I just forgot."

Jack's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "That fast already?"

Kayla nodded. "Nana said she wanted the funeral to be done fast because it's just too heartbreaking to drag it out longer," she added softly, her brown eyes glistening.

Jack took her in his arms as he felt a tiny sob escape her lips.

"They're gonna bury mummy and daddy underground where they would never be able to come up again, I won't be able to see them anymore," Kayla said in a sad tone as she looked up into Jack's blue gaze.

"Kayla, trust me when I say this, but everything's gonna be okay, your mum and dad are going to be so proud of you when they see how strong their little girl is, so just be strong for them okay?" Jack asked as he gave steadied her shoulders with his hands.

"Okay," Kayla said as she nodded sadly.

Jack just embraced her, feeling like how he would whenever Baby Tooth was upset or hurt. He felt compassion and he also shared her sadness.

Kayla's head fell against his shoulders as he realized how tired she might be from all this emotional stress. He laid her down on her bead as he began to stroke her hair.

"Jack, can you come for my mummy and daddy's funeral?" Kayla asked.

Jack thought about it for over a second. "Sure, I'll come visit you after your mum and dad's funeral, to give you a little space to process everything," Jack said.

Kayla nodded as she drifted off to sleep. Jack moved slowly, trying not to wake Kayla up.

He then opened her door, shut it softly and made his way downstairs. He found Mrs. Montgomery, on the phone talking to someone and it sounded like funeral arrangements that she was making. She then sat down, took of her glasses and sighed. Jack pitied the poor old lady who was probably heartbroken at the news of her son's death but still had to be strong for the sake of her granddaughter. Jack started to feel a certain respect for Mrs. Montgomery.

Mrs. Montgomery then reached for a stack of cards as she began to write. Jack then peered over her shoulder to see what she was writing about. She was writing invites, tons and tons of invites, all detailing about the upcoming funeral.

Jack sighed as he went back upstairs to Kayla's room. _I've been doing a lot of sighing lately, _Jack mused. Just like the night before, Jack stayed with Kayla until she woke up, stuck in his own thoughts. When morning approached and Kayla started stirring, he greeted her, told her that he would be visiting over some places over the world and left.

The next few days started out the same, Jack would leave every night from Kayla's house, fulfill his guardian duties for the day and then come back just in time for Kayla's bedtime.

Today was slightly different. Mrs. Montgomery had already finished out all of the arrangement and the funeral would take place on Saturday, which is tomorrow. Kayla was still wide awake when Jack pushed open her window.

"Hey Kay, you still awake?" Jack asked as he sat by her bed. Kayla nodded and turned over so that she could see Jack.

Jack noticed that the dark circles under her eyes were becoming more noticeable and that the girl had lost a few pounds. She didn't look delicate and precious like before, she looked tired and sad.

"Yeah, I can't sleep," Kayla replied as she pouted.

"Can you tell me a story?" she asked Jack, her face suddenly exploding into a big smile. Jack was caught off guard at her sudden eagerness but he nodded.

She laid back down on her side of the bed as Jack lay down next to her, pulling the covers over the both of them.

"What does the little princess want to hear?" Jack asked, using his favorite nickname for her.

'Hmm… I want to know how come you have white hair, and that you can fly and nobody else can see you but me? I mean I know you're a guardian, but how did you become one?" Kayla asked in one breath.

"Woah, slow down Kay, one by one," Jack said as he laughed at her expression.

Jack rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I'll start from the beginning, alright?" Jack asked Kayla. She nodded.

"Alright, before I became Jack Frost, I was just Jackson Overland Frost. I was an 18 year old boy living with my parents, and sister whose name I don't know," Jack sighed before he continued. "One day I was skating with my sister but I didn't know that the ice on the river was too thin and that it would be too dangerous to skate on," Jack said as he glanced over at Kayla who paid rapt attention to him.

"The ice where my sister was standing on was cracking and she was afraid, so I told her that everything will be alright and I saved her, but I fell into the lake instead," Jack said as he got lost into his own memory. "One night, I remembered I emerged from the very same lake I drowned in and what'd you know, I had white hair, a magic staff and I could fly. The Man on the Moon told me my name was Jack Frost and that's all he said. Nobody can see me unless they believe in me. I never saw my family or my sister, ever again, I've been alone since 317 years ago, until I met the rest of the guardians" Jack finished as he looked down on Kayla.

"Woah… You're really old," Kayla said as Jack bit back the laugh he had when he saw her adorable expression.

"Still not as old as Santa or the Tooth Fairy," Jack replied, grinning at her. Kayla laughed as she asked Jack to describe the Tooth Fairy and Santa. After Jack was done, Kayla's eyes were starting to droop.

"Oh, one last question Jack, how did your sister look like?" Kayla asked innocently, peeking up from underneath her covers.

Jack pondered over this question for a little while. "Actually, Kayla, she looked a lot like you, though I don't really remember her that well," he admitted.

"Why?" Kayla asked, genuinely curious.

"Because I can only remember so much that the memories of my teeth show me, the rest is all just a blur," he said.

"Your teeth?"

"Yup, our teeth hold memories from when we were a child, but only the child themselves have access to those memories, the Tooth Fairy just collects them," Jack explained.

Kayla nodded as she let her head fall on Jack's shoulder.

"I'm too tired, night Jack," she said in between yawns.

"Night Kayla," he replied, smoothing her hair of her face. He didn't really admit it but he liked her hair because it reminded him of silk. _Brown silk, though, _Jack mused.

In just a matter of minutes, Kayla was fast asleep.

Just then, a steam of golden sand started forming on top of her head, twisting itself to images that in her subconscious. The sand twisted itself into a dog, prancing in a field just as Kayla smiled in her sleep.

Jack smiled as he looked on at the images forming above her head, completely entranced. He sat for hours just as the sun came up, completely absorbed in the different dreams playing out in Kayla's head.

Then, there was a rap on Kayla's door as her grandmother called her awake. _Oh, right, her parent's funeral was today, _Jack reminded himself. Kayla got up just as the images above her disappeared.

"What? Why is it so early in the morning?" Kayla yawned as she rubbed her eyes. Jack was surprised when the word 'adorable' filled up his mind when he saw Kayla's expression.

"Morning Kay, yeah, it is a little bit early but today's the funeral," Jack reminded her.

A look of shock came upon her face as she rushed out of her bed and scrambled on the floor. She looked as if she were a hurry, as Jack chuckled and helped propped her onto her small feet. She gave a grateful smile as she ran to her closet to take out her special black dress that Nana had picked out for her for today.

Suddenly, she looked embarrass. "Erm, Jack, could you please leave the room, I need to change. I don't know why but mummy always said I couldn't change in front of a guy," Kayla asked in an innocent like way.

Jack flushed as he knew just the reason why, instead he made it less awkward. "Ha, your mum was right, girl's aren't suppose to be changing in front of guys, too right you are," Jack said as he fumbled with his staff and threw open the window. "I'll come back tonight to check up on you, oh, and Kayla?" Jack asked as he went over to her and knelt down to level their faces. "You're a strong little girl, do you know that? I admire your courage very much, you're mum and dad would be proud of you," Jack said in a soft tone as he brushed a few stray locks out of her face as she smiled her amazing, big smile.

Then, Jack turned around as he flew out of her window, vowing to make his newfound friend feel less sad tonight when he visited her. _Huh, new found friend_, Jack mused as he looked up the sky. _Manny, what did you get me into? _


	4. Chapter 4

**Yesh, fourth chapter! This one is more towards Kayla's P.O.V. Oh, and danke schoen x1000 for everyone who reviewed and favorite-d WOC. xoxo teeceecee**

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Kayla watched Jack as he flew out of her window, into the winter morning with a feeling of something like envy? She'd always wish she could fly like him, because it just looked so fun.

Instead, here she is, stuck in her room, going for her parent's funeral. Her little shoulders slumped down as a few lone tears escaped from the corner of her eyes. Nana had told her that getting over someone who passed away could take a long time. She even saw it in Jack, when he spoke about his sister and his parents. His eyes would grow sad.

Kayla just shrugged as she managed to put on her dress correctly and ran a vrush through her hair. She went downstairs to find Nana with a file and box in her hand. Mrs. Montgomery smiled at her as she wished her granddaughter a good morning.

"What's in that box, Nana?" Kayla asked as she scrambled onto Mrs. Montgomery's lap and studied the beautiful black box. She ran her small finger over the surface and it felt soft, like Lulu's fur, though not quite like fur.

"I just got this from Mr. Thompson, our lawyer. He said that this is your mummy's gift to you, in her will," Mrs. Montgomery explained as she opened the velvet box. Inside the box, there was an antique sapphire hair comb, a beautiful diamond chain and a few grainy black and white pictures.

Kayla picked up the pictures. "Nana, what's this?" Kayla asked as she showed Mrs. Montgomery the grainy black and white pictures. Her Nana squinted for a while before letting of a small gust of breath.

"That Kayla… Those are your ultrasound pictures, the one where you were still in your mummy's tummy," Mrs. Montgomery explained as tears misted her eyes.

Mrs. Montgomery flipped back the photo and found that there was a caption there. "Just found out that I'm pregnant! Am so excited, this baby is such a blessing", it wrote.

She handed it back to Kayla who studied it for a minute. "I don't even look like me in here," she grumbled.

Her grandmother just laughed. "Of course not silly, you were just the size of a peanut when your mum found out she was going to have you," Mrs. Montgomery said as she tucked the pictures back into the velvet box carefully. She then took out the delicate diamond necklace and put it around Kayla's neck.

"There, a precious necklace for a precious little girl," Mrs. Montgomery said as she lifted Kayla's hair up and tied it into a ponytail.

"C'mon dear, or we're gonna be late for the funeral," she said quietly as she took Kayla's hand in hers and lead her to the car outside.

Half an hour later, they were sitting in the church, in front of Kayla's parent's coffin. The funeral started with hymns and a speech by the minister. It then ended with speeches from old friends and family members who came to pay their last respects to Jeremy and Kelly Montgomery. Kayla and her grandmother got up as they led the way to the cemetery, following the coffins as the first few notes of "Amazing Grace" could be heard from the background.

Everyone gathered around two freshly dug graves as the coffins were lowered in their respective graves. Kayla then walked up to her parent's grave. "Bye mummy, bye daddy, I love you," she whispered as she looked down. The ceremony was done after the minister sprinkled soil onto Jeremy and Kelly's while reciting "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust…"

Kayla touched her necklace before giving one last look at her parents before going back to face her other relatives. She felt too numb to cry, like as if she couldn't comprehend everything that had happened.

Just then, it started to snow. Little delicate snowflakes falling from the sky, giving the place a more enchanting and hopeful look and Kayla smiled. _Jack_, she thought.

After the ceremony, Kayla went to greet her other relatives but she was sick of all their pitying stares. She just wanted to go home and run to Jack, all of this was just too overwhelming for her.

* * *

**This chapter was done in a slight rush but nonetheless, more to come and *hint hint* drama! Stay tuned!**


	5. Chapter 5

**W'okay, 5th chapter. This ones a little bit more cheerful cause c'mon everyone needs a little happiness too right? Rate, review and favorite for more!**

* * *

When Kayla and her grandmother made it home, it was close to midnight. They quickly said their goodnight's and Kayla went up to her room. She breathed in deeply as she tried to get her head around today. She quickly changed into her pajamas and sat on her bead. Her little hands clasped around the diamond chain her mother had left her and oddly enough, Kayla always felt a weird peacefulness whenever she touched her precious gift.

Just then, a knock could be heard from her window and she looked up in time to see Jack coming through her window shaking of some snowflakes from his hair. Kayla stifled a giggle as she thought that Jack's hair always looked as if it was made of snow all the time.

"Hey Kayla, what're you laughing at?" Jack asked curiously as he sat beside her.

"Erm, I was just thinking that your hair looks as if you bath it in snow every day," Kayla shrugged as she pointed at his hair. "It's just so _glow-y_ like," she said with an adorable crinkle in her eyebrows.

Jack laughed as he took in her expression. "Well, I am the coldest of all the cold," Jack said in a mock arrogant tone as he tickled Kayla's sides. She shrieked and dodged his cold hands as Jack laughed his most carefree laugh. He then noticed the sparkling diamond necklace on Kayla's neck and traced it gently.

"It's so beautiful," he murmured as he stared at it, transfixed.

"My mummy left it for me in her will," Kayla explained as she looked down fondly at her necklace.

"She has great taste," Jack replied and then his face grew slightly alarmed. "Don't tell the Easter Bunny I said that, he'll never let me forget about it," Jack said as he chuckled.

Kayla just giggled as she took Jack's hand in hers and clutched it to her chest.

Jack looked down at her with what could be a look of tenderness on his face. "The necklace is seriously pretty though, but it needs a little… Something," Jack said thoughtfully as he conjured up snow from his right palm.

Kayla watched, in awe as Jack manipulated the snow and shards of ice until a delicate crystal snowflake pendant nestled in his palm. He gently took of Kayla's necklace, looped the pendant on it and reattached it back to Kayla's neck.

"There, it looks better now, princess," Jack said as he smiled at her. His expression then grew a little serious.

"How are you today Kayla?" Jack asked as he tucked the covers up to her chin. He confronted this turn of conversation cautiously.

"I'm okay; it's just that, I feel… Weird, like I know I have to cry, but I just can't cry," Kayla said as she furrowed her brow in a thoughtful expression.

"It's okay princess, it's just the shock, when you wake up in the morning, it'll all be better," Jack cooed as he tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ears.

Kayla nodded, eyes already growing heavy. "Everything will be okay by tomorrow," she said in a sleepy tone as her little hand grasped the pendant Jack made for her and her eyes drooped close. Moments later, she was fast asleep.

She sure does knock out pretty quick, Jack mused as he leaned in to kiss her forehead gently. Unfortunately, Jack had a meeting with the guardians tonight and he couldn't stay long, but he vowed to be back before Kayla woke up in the morning. As softly as he could, Jack opened Kayla's window and flew out into the cool night air.

As he flew, Jack couldn't help thinking if having such a strong attachment to a child was really such a wise idea, not that he was complaining. After years of rejection and loneliness it felt nice to have someone he could hold on to again. Jack knew that he cared for Kayla. The love he felt for her was like the love he felt for his sister. It was that kind of love that would make him sacrifice everything for her.

As Jack continued to muse, lost in his own thoughts, he almost missed the route to North's workshop. Luckily he reined in the winds and zipped as fast as he could. He made it in time to swoosh over Bunnymund, who had appeared out of a random hole.

"Bugger!" Bunny swore as he nearly lost his footing. He turned around and glared at Jack who was just standing there, trying hard not to burst out laughing. "Watch it, snowflake," Bunny smirked as he used Jack's least favorite nickname. Jack rolled his eyes as he gestured for Bunnymund to hurry up and the both of them raced to the remaining distance of North's workshop.

The both of them were the last ones to get there as they found Sandy, Tooth and North nursing a cup of hot cocoa. Phil, the yeti, handed Jack and Bunnymund a cup. Bunny declined as he shook of the snow from his fur. He **hated** the cold.

Jack accepted his cup as he took a seat beside Sandy. Whatever animosity the guardians all felt the last time Jack saw them all together (during the accident) completely vanished as Tooth and Sandy greeted him warmly.

North chuckled as he clapped his huge hands together. "Guardians, I call you all here today to discuss some very good news," North said in a jolly tone as he looked at all of them. They all waited patiently for North to continue.

"As I was saying, the good news is, more children are starting to believe now," he said in a joyous tone. "The lights on the Globe nearly doubled up over 2000 and that's currently the highest statistic we have," North continued benignly.

Tooth clapped her hands in excitement as Sandy had exploding fireworks over his head. Even Bunnymund grinned as Jack flew up and did a somersault, almost forgetting that he was holding a cup of hot chocolate in his hands. He grinned sheepishly as he floated back down on the sofa. North just looked, amused at them.

"I told you Christmas was the best holiday," North added cheekily, winking in Bunny's direction. The Pooka just rolled his eyes.

"Not now, old man," Bunny replied but the huge smile on his face betrayed the annoyance in his tone.

"Gosh, this is so great!" Tooth said exuberantly as she flew from guardian to guardian. She really could get excited easily. "Think of all the lovely children we'll be able to take care of now! And their teeth too, how could you forget about teeth?" Tooth said excitedly as she sat back down. A slight blush crept onto her cheeks at her reaction.

The other guardians just chuckled and made small talk with one another before Jack got up and stretched. "Sorry guys, I gotta go, I promised Kayla I would spend the rest of the day with her," Jack said as he hovered in the air.

"Aww, c'mon mate, we're just getting started, and besides, it isn't even dawn yet," Bunnymund said, slurring over his words. Jack glanced down at his paw and found him holding a cup of eggnog.

"Seriously, Bunny? Drunk already?" Jack asked sarcastically.

Bunny nodded. "S'okay mate, we're just getting started" Bunny yelped as he felt North took the cup of eggnog from his paws. He sniffed it. "Darn those yetis. They must've spiked Bunny's drink with alcohol," North grunted in his rough Russian accent as he looked on at Bunnymund with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. Bunny was now currently trying to dance with Tooth and telling her how pretty she was.

Jack just laughed. "Seriously guys, I gotta go," Jack said as he flew out. But before he could even reach out of the door, a pair of fluffy paws caught him by the ankles and drew him back into the room. Bunny crushed Jack to him in a tight hug and put him down on the floor.

"You're an idiot Frosty, but remember I always loovvee you!" Bunny said as he grinned goofily. He then pushed Jack out of the door while yelling "Fly snowflake fly! Up, up in the sky," as he staggered back into the workshop. Jack just shook his head in amusement.

"Bunny, you're drunk…" Tooth said in dismay as Jack took off into the air. He knew he was never gonna let Bunnymund forget about this.

In a matter of minutes, Jack arrived back at Kayla's house as he stepped through her bedroom window. Immediately he felt something of as he watched Kayla struggle in her sleep. Little whimpering noises could be heard as she tossed and turned. Suddenly, she gave a cry and shot up of her bed. Jack immediately went to her as he held her in his arms and comforted the crying little girl.

"Shh, shh, you're gonna be okay," Jack whispered as he rocked her small body against his in a comforting motion.

"J-Jack, I dream that someone killed my mummy and daddy while I was there, I couldn't st-st-stop them," she stuttered and sobbed some more. Jack felt as if someone had punched him in the gut.

"It's okay Kayla, it's okay," he said, struggling to find the right words to comfort her. He then thought about telling her a truth but he knew that if he did, she wouldn't trust him anymore. So, with a heavy heart, Jack lied. "Shh, calm down Kayla, your parents death was just an accident, nobody killed them," he whispered. Deep inside, he knew he had committed a crime more worse than killing an innocent child's parents.

Kayla seemed to have calmed down a little but her body was still shaking. Suddenly, Jack had an idea.

"Hey, Kayla, do you want to go flying?" he asked, his excitement barely contained.

Kayla's head shot up as she looked at him in shock, not daring to believe that the winter spirit was taking her flying. "Are you sure, Jack?" Kayla asked him tentatively.

"Sure," Jack replied as he shrugged. "Up you go," Jack said as he lifted her into his arms as best as he could. Kayla clung to his jacket, completely freaked out.

"What if I, what if I fall?" Kayla asked, barely hiding her fear.

Jack hugged her against his chest tighter. The little girl felt as light as a feather in his arms. "Kayla, I will never, ever let you fall," Jack reassured her as he held her tighter and looked into her scared brown eyes. His statement had a double meaning but he wasn't sure Kayla understood the other meaning to his words.

Kayla just nodded as she wrapped her arms around his neck. In one swift motion, Jack was flying out of Kayla's bedroom window and into the frosty midnight sky.

She shrieked in exhilaration as she felt the wind whipping through her hair. Jack laughed his carefree laugh as he swooped through the night sky with a grace that would make even an eagle jealous.

Kayla laughed along with him as she looked down and saw the town's light twinkling below her. She let out an awed sound as she pointed excitedly down.

"What is it, princess?" Jack asked her as he looked in the direction that she was pointing.

"I can see Nana's house from up here," she shouted over the wind, pointing to a house that looked like a square piece of light. Jack just chuckled as he nodded. Mrs. Montgomery's house was far from where they were, but Jack just let her have her way.

They sliced through the night sky, clinging onto each other. Jack was thinking about how this was the first time he felt so carefree flying in a _long_ time. Kayla was just stuck thinking how awesome this is and making sure she wasn't in a dream. They flew in silence as they circled a frozen lake. Under the mystical moonlight, it looked like an enchanting, ethereal mirror. They continued a little faster around the woods in Burgess. Jack shielded Kayla's face from the worse of the harsh wind as they looked on in awe at the woods below them.

"It looks just like the forest from Tinkerbell," Kayla said in awe, referring to her favorite cartoon characters house in the woods.

Jack nodded as he smiled down at her. For the first time, she didn't look so morbid or troubled. She looked like the little girl she was supposed to be.

All too soon, Jack had to turn back and head back home. He got through her bedroom window and gently put a windswept Kayla back on her bed. The look in her eyes was magical and mesmerizing as she stared at Jack.

"Thank you," Kayla said to Jack as she hugged him.

"You're welcome," Jack replied as he chuckled and held her closer.

The both of them then laid together, lost in each other's thoughts as slowly but surely, Kayla's breathing turned into light snores and Jack's heartbeat returned back to its original pace. The guardian had never felt more alive and at the same time, so content.

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**Next chapter would prob take a few more days to upload if I'm free and maybe, if I get enough responses? *winks* **


	6. Chapter 6

The days past by normally enough, almost sluggishly, Jack thought as he flew above the Eiffel Tower, giving a light dusting of snowflakes along the way. The people who were gathered around the tower all ooh and aahed at the magical sight of Paris's most famous landmark dusted with snow.

"You're welcome," Jack said as he bowed, midair before zipping around, enjoying the day. Jack laughed as he somersaulted in the air, causing fresh new snow to tumble down onto the streets below him. Jack always loved Paris because it reminded him of all those times he watched fireworks exploding over the Eiffel Tower in awe and slight jealousy. Jealousy because the people down there could enjoy their New Year with their families and friends while Jack was stuck hovering around by himself.

It was so easy for him to be stuck in his own world as he went around doing his job. He didn't want to admit it, but he was worried that Kayla seemed to be having so many nightmares nowadays. He knew it had nothing to do with Pitch because her nightmares weren't infiltrated by someone else. They were all her own.

Jack recalled back the first night that she had woke up screaming in fear. He then took her flying to calm her down. He remembered what it felt like as he zipped over the frozen lake with Kayla in his arms as she laughed in excitement and held onto him tighter. He smiled at that memory.

Jack knew that it had to be almost night time there at Burgess so he quickly made a last gust of snow wind and flew back to his hometown. Jack reached Kayla's window and opened it, only to find the little girl sitting on her bed, propped on her back, reading a book.

She smiled widely at him before putting the book down. She ran to him and gave him a huge hug as he twirled her before the both of them fell flat on the bed, laughing.

"How was your day, princess?" Jack asked as he got up and lightly tickled Kayla's sides. She giggled and dodged his hands. She was always so ticklish.

She then sat down on Jack's lap as she took out the book she was reading before he arrived. Jack picked it up curiously as one hand wrapped around her waist and held her closer.

"It's my old book that Nana passed it to me when she went collecting my stuff from my old house. Nana said that I'll be staying here with her now and guess what Jack? She said that I would also attend something called a… Pre-school?" Kayla said as she frowned, momentarily forgot the name of the place where she went during the schooling season.

Jack just chuckled as he nodded. "Good for you Kayla, I bet your excited," he said, ruffling her hair.

"Oh I am!" she exclaimed as she bounced on his lap, clapping her hands excitedly. Jack winced a little in pain and held her still to calm to her down.

"Alright you little ankle biter, I know you're excitedly, but you don't have to pummel me to death," he laughed as she smiled at him apologetically.

Kayla picked her book up and frowned at it quizzically, as if it held the meaning of the universe to her.

"What's wrong Kayla?" Jack asked as he looked over her shoulder. He noticed that she was reading a book of fables and fairytales.

"I-I can't understand some words in here and… Could you please, read me a story," she asked him, shyly.

Jack felt a little bit surprised at her request but complied. "Okay," he replied as he took the book from her hands.

"Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful princess named Kayla Montgomery," Jack said in a teasing tone as he added his own words.

"Hey!" Kayla exclaimed as she smacked his arm and squealed when he tickled her again. "That's not how Cinderella was supposed to go," she said and pouted.

"Okay, okay, okay," Jack replied docilely as he read the story back again. Kayla settled into his arms as he read her the story of Cinderella, his rich deep voice filling the room and added to the tender atmosphere between the two of them.

Jack finished the story just in time to see Kayla fast asleep, leaning on his arm. He took care not to rustle the sleeping girl and gently set her on the bed, tucking the covers up to her chin. He stroked her head a few times before kissing her forehead, a ritual now that he always did whenever she fell asleep. He then sat down on her bed as he stared outside her window, at the rapidly falling snow.

He then decided to take a peek around Kayla's room just for the fun of it because he hadn't actually had a good look at it when he was around. Jack roamed around her room as he picked up various objects and put them down back again. He then passed by her study table when he noticed a velvet box there. It was elegant yet subtle at the same time as he curiously opened it.

The box contained a few pieces of grainy black and white pictures, a vintage sapphire comb and diamond earrings. Out of curiosity, Jack picked up the pictures and studied them. At first he was confused as to what the images were but recognition slowly dawned as he realized they might be ultrasound pictures. It was probably Kayla's. He turned the picture around and smiled at the captions there. He felt that familiar twinge of guilt when he thought of Kayla's parents and quickly put the pictures back into the box.

"Well, well, well, feeling guilty are we now, Jack Frost?" came a menacing whisper.

Jack quickly turned around as his grip on his staff tightened. He found no one there as he searched around Kayla's room.

The voice laughed softly, directly in his ear. Jack whipped around the other direction of the voice as he snarled. "Who are you? Show yourself," he demanded as he circled the floor with a predatory-like stance.

"Not yet, Jack, not yet. It's not time yet," the voice cooed and Jack noted that it sounded frail and weak.

"Who are you?" Jack asked again, his tone growing impatient. It was silent for a moment.

"Your worst nightmare," the voice whispered.

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**Sorry if this was too short, I'm having intensive classes now for almost 8 hours a day and I can't update that much or regularly now *sobs* Unless, maybeee... This story gets more than 20 reviews? It could inspire my brain juices to work overtime ;)) Review, rate, and favorite for more! xoxo, teeceecee. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Finally found time to update this and spent almost a whole day laboring over this chapter so I do expect more reviews this time round, haha, just kidding! Nah, I'm totally serious. Enjoy!**

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Just then, Kayla gave a loud piercing scream and awoke with a jolt. Jack nearly jumped out of his own skin as he ran to her and calmed her down. Kayla cried in misery as she was awoken, yet again to another horrible nightmare. She sobbed and hugged Jack closer to her as she was suddenly tired from the onslaught of terrifying dreams.

"What is it, Kayla? Talk to me," Jack said urgently as he wrapped her tighter in his arms and cradled her face in his hands, worry and concern written all over his face.

"I had that dream again, Jack, I hate those nightmares! I just want it to stop!" Kayla shrieked as she started bawling. Jack just rocked her in his arms, too shaken by what she admitted to say anything.

Suddenly, Kayla's bedroom door flew opened as Mrs. Montgomery rushed in. "Kayla sweetheart, what happened here?" her grandmother asked in a panicked tone as she took in Kayla's state of misery. The poor girl had huge tears running down her face and seemed to be clutching her hands in front of her body like as if she was clinging on to someone.

Her grandmother rushed to her side and ran a hand through her granddaughter's hair as she tried to calm the little girl.

"I had an awful dream Nana, it was about mummy and daddy," Kayla wailed as she hugged her grandmother tighter. Jack just looked on hopelessly, feeling despair creeping into his heart.

Her grandmother just comforted her as Kayla thrashed around her arms, suddenly yearning to be free. The look in her eyes was sheer panic and fear.

"I've been having these nightmares for a long time already Nana, ever since mummy and daddy's funeral. I can't sleep after I have that nightmare, that's why I fell asleep during dinner time," Kayla confessed as she looked at her grandmother morosely.

Mrs. Montgomery just stared at her granddaughter with compassion in her eyes. After a moment of silence, Mrs. Montgomery cleared her throat as slowly, Kayla's sobbing slowly but surely subsided.

"Honey, maybe we should bring you to see a doctor," Mrs. Montgomery said in a gentle tone as she smoothed her granddaughter's wayward hair.

Jack gave a sharp intake of breath as he understood _which _doctor she meant.

"Maybe we should go and see a therapist. The shock of losing your mummy and daddy must have taken a toll on you, you poor girl," Mrs. Montgomery said in a sympathizing tone. "I'll arranged for you to visit the doctor by tomorrow, dear, for now, try to get some rest," her grandmother said as she kissed her cheek and left her room.

Kayla just looked at Jack and he shrugged his shoulders as if to say, _I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do._ The guardian and his young friend silently awaited the morning as they each were lost in their own thoughts.

~WOC~

The next morning was a flurry of different activities as Mrs. Montgomery prepared to leave for the psychiatrist with Kayla. Jack took off early in the morning but he promised that he'll be back tonight. He kneeled down in front of Kayla, leveling their faces together, hers was slightly pale.

"Hey buddy, don't worry okay, everything's gonna be fine," Jack said as he kissed her forehead. Kayla nodded and bounded off towards her Nana as Jack flew off.

Mrs. Montgomery had her back turned in Kayla's room when Kayla went searching for her. The little girl found her grandmother looking at a few pieces of paper and recognition dawned on her as she realized that Nana was looking at her drawings. She never drew that often, but ever since having those nightmares, Kayla started drawing more often. She felt calm whenever she drew.

Her Nana turned around and faced her. "Kayla, dear, who's this?" she asked as she motioned towards a drawing with a blue hooded figure, carrying a wooden staff, holding a little girl's hand.

"That's Jack, Nana, he spends time with me every night, he's my best friend," the little girl replied earnestly.

Mrs. Montgomery's brow furrowed. "Honey, Jack Frost is just a silly fable," her grandmother explained in a kind tone.

Kayla shook her head vehemently. "No he's not Nana, he stays with me every night, hugs me when I'm sad and he even took me flying once," Kayla explained but got irritated when her grandmother just shook her head. "Look! He even made me a pendant," Kayla gestured to her diamond necklace as her grandmother stared at her snowflake pendant, disbelieve written all over her face.

Mrs. Montgomery shook her head, feeling weird but she didn't say another word as she and Kayla made her way to her car.

The car ride to the 'special doctors' place was quiet as Kayla was still mad at her grandmother for not believing her.

They made it to a modest, white building located in Burgess's more uptown places. Mrs. Montgomery helped Kayla out of the car as they both made their way into the building. The waiting room was sophisticatedly designed, with chic looking furniture and polished wooden floors.

The wait was mercifully short as the nurse ushered them in. Behind the desk sat a middle age blonde woman. She was wearing a charcoal colored blazer, pencil skirt and a kind smile. Her name tag identified her as Miss Abigail. The doctor greeted them as she gestured for Kayla and her grandmother to sit on the two plastic chairs in front of her desk.

"Hello, my name is Dr. Abigail. What seems to be the matter?" she asked in a gentle yet professional tone.

Mrs. Montgomery glanced at Kayla before proceeding. "My son and daughter in law just passed away 2 weeks ago from a car crash. They left poor Kayla here with me but recently, she's been getting a lot of nightmares and having trouble sleeping," Mrs. Montgomery replied softly as she stared at her granddaughter aimlessly fidgeting with her dress edge.

"Oh, I'm so sorry for your lost," the psychiatrist said in a compassionate tone as she looked at Kayla. "Hello, dear, you must be Kayla. Such a pretty name for a pretty girl; do you mind telling Dr. Abigail about the dreams you've been having?" she asked as she smiled at the nervous little girl.

Kayla finally had the nerve to glance at the concerned psychiatrist. "I keep on having dreams about this dark cloaked man, he keeps on showing me mummy and daddy's death in the accident. He then starts hurting them and I feel so scared cause I can't help them," Kayla explained in a voice barely above a whisper. Tears started pooling in her eyes.

The psychiatrist's eyes widened when she heard Kayla's story. "How do you feel when you wake up the next morning? Are you still sad or just shake it off?"

Kayla thought about it for a second. "When I wake up, I feel happy because Jack is there to comfort me, he tells me everything will be okay and I believe him," Kayla admitted.

"Oh, that's wonderful. Is Jack your brother?" Dr. Abigail asked as she took down some notes on her clipboard.

"Nope, he's my best friend, I met him on the night my parents…" she trailed of, unable to continue.

Mrs. Montgomery just chuckled. "She loves her imaginary friend too much, I keep on hearing her talk to herself every single night," Mrs. Montgomery said as she smoothed back Kayla's hair but her granddaughter flinched away from her touch.

"Jack's not an imaginary friend, he's real. He took me flying once, read me stories when I couldn't sleep and he even gave me a snowflake pendant!" Kayla said defensively.

Dr. Abigail glanced at Kayla's necklace. "It's a very pretty necklace, so you said Jack gave that to you?" she asked as she jotted down a few more notes on her clipboard.

"Yes, he did," Kayla replied. "He can control the snow and ice, so he made this snowflake out of ice for me," she replied in a slightly hurt tone.

"Mrs. Montgomery, what do you think?" Dr. Abigail asked her grandmother.

Mrs. Montgomery looked down at Kayla, her mouth set in a grim line. Her granddaughter pleaded for her to believe her words with her eyes. Mrs. Montgomery sighed. "I think it's a wonderful story but I gave her that diamond pendant. The necklace was from her mother's will so I thought that by giving her that pendant, it would complete the beautiful necklace," Mrs. Montgomery said reassuringly.

Kayla gasped. She couldn't believe her grandmother just dismissed her story like that! Dr. Abigail nodded as she jotted down some more on her clipboard. Kayla was visibly fuming.

"Kayla, dear, why don't you go sit outside my office while I discuss something with your Nana. Do you like to read? There's a whole shelf of books outside and if you get hungry, just call for Mrs. Diane. I think she'll be able to rustle up some biscuits for you if you want," Dr. Abigail said sweetly as she gestured towards her door.

Kayla opened her mouth as if to argue but her grandmother just fixed her a subtle hard stare. She nodded dejectedly as she stepped outside.

Mrs. Montgomery sighed once the doors were closed. "How bad is it?" she asked Dr. Abigail wearily, already fearing the answer.

Dr. Abigail too gave heaved a sigh as she looked through her notes again.

"From what I can gather, Kayla could most probably be suffering from post traumatic stress and depression. She seems to be exhibiting signs of loneliness, revisiting a terrible memory by dreaming about it, avoiding questions regarding her parent's accident…" the psychiatrist said. "You can't blame her though, that poor child did go through the same accident as her parents though she wasn't hurt. Physically she wasn't but emotionally, she could be scarred," Dr. Abigail said to a frowning Mrs. Montgomery.

"But what about her insistence about this.. Jack she seemed to always talk about? It's like she's convinced that he's real," Mrs. Montgomery asked.

Dr. Abigail rose up unexpectedly as she sat down on the chair next to Kayla's grandmother. "Mrs. Montgomery, you have to know that even soldiers who go through a war come back having post traumatic disorders. They often dream about being back in the battlefield, hearing gunshots when there isn't any and flying into battle mode at the slightest hint of danger. What's more, Kayla who has gone through something equally as traumatic for her, and she's just a child," Dr. Abigail said in a compassionate tone as she explained to Mrs. Montgomery.

"Children sometimes deal with the shock of being alone after their parents death by creating imaginary friends. This often gives them the feeling of being safe and cared for. It gives them an outlet to feel compassion and love when they can't find one," the psychiatrist explained as Mrs. Montgomery nodded.

"Have I really neglected this child, Dr. Abigail?" Mrs. Montgomery asked in a quiet voice.

Dr. Abigail shook her head. "You probably did all that you could for her Mrs. Montgomery, but children have this funny way of always needing so much more," the psychiatrist said kindly.

Mrs. Montgomery nodded. "How can you help her Dr. Abigail?"

"I could put her on cognitive treatment, give her counseling and help her express her thoughts and any feelings that she might have based on her experience in the car crash," she replied.

"When can she start?" Mrs. Montgomery asked wearily.

"We can start by tomorrow," Dr. Abigail said. "I'll first try to get her to express her feelings and thoughts about the car crash and we'll plan on what happens from there," Dr. Abigail reassured Mrs. Montgomery.

The petite, old lady just nodded, suddenly tired.

"I'll do whatever it takes to help that little girl overcome her emotional scarring, Mrs. Montgomery. It's what I do to help people," the psychiatrist said.

Mrs. Montgomery then got up to thank Dr. Abigail for her time and went out to retrieve her still sulking granddaughter. They were in the car when Mrs. Montgomery first broke the frosty silence surrounding them.

"How do you feel about this treatment, dear?" she asked.

Kayla turned her sulky expression to her grandmother as she thought about what to say.

"Why did you tell the lady doctor that Jack isn't real Nana? I feel sad that you would lie to someone when I told you the truth," her granddaughter admitted in a sad tone.

Mrs. Montgomery sighed. "Kayla, sometimes when you go through something horrible like your parents car crash, you tend to imagine some things in your mind which aren't real. Maybe you made Jack up because you felt lonely and sad that mummy and daddy were gone. He may be real to you but sometimes sadness plays with our mind and makes us believe in something that isn't real," Mrs. Montgomery explained to her granddaughter in a kind tone.

Kayla just huffed. "But Nana, he is real, he even gave me that snowflake pendant to make me feel happy when I was sad," the little girl argued.

"Kayla, I gave you that pendant, it was in your mother's velvet box, maybe you just didn't notice it, dear," her grandmother said hastily.

"But…" Kayla sighed. "Never mind, you wouldn't understand it anyway," she grumbled and continued staring outside her window, sulking.

Mrs. Montgomery shook her head as she silently felt grateful that Kayla didn't continue the argument.

Lunch at home was relatively silent and Kayla stomped upstairs once everything was done. She decided to take out all of her anger and sadness by drawing. Kayla discovered that if she absorbed herself in her newfound passion, she would instantly feel a whole lot better. She spent the remainder of the day, cooped up in her room, trying to perfect her sketch of a snowflake.

She didn't realize that it was almost 8 by the time she was done. Kayla was just about to go down for dinner when she heard a knock on her door.

Mrs. Montgomery walked in carrying a tray of soup and crackers, something she always made when her grandchild was sad.

"That's a really pretty picture of a snowflake Kayla," she said as she peered at her granddaughter's drawing.

Kayla flushed with a little hint of pride as she thanked her grandmother and proceeded to put finishing touches on her drawing once Mrs. Montgomery left the room. She polished of her dinner, set the tray downstairs as she went back to her room to clean up. She let out a small shriek as she found out that she wasn't alone.

Jack was staring at her sketch, lost in it and jumped when he heard Kayla shriek. The two of them stared at each other for a second before the both of them burst out laughing. Kayla ran to Jack as she hugged him fiercely, letting her running emotions out as she held him.

Jack laughed softly as he hugged her back. "Kayla, what's wrong?" he asked as he let go of her.

Kayla sniffed before she told Jack how her psychiatrist and grandmother seemed to think that she was making up the story of him and how her grandmother lied to the psychiatrist and told her that she got the snowflake pendant from her instead. Jack's brow furrowed as he patiently let Kayla finish her story. When she was done, Jack sat her on her bed as he thought of the words to say.

"Kayla, it's anyone's right to believe in what they want to believe. If your doctor and grandmother don't believe you when you tell them I'm real, let them be. Grownups are weird anyway," Jack said as he shrugged.

"But you are real! And they have to believe me," Kayla replied hot-headedly as she folded her arms and pouted.

"I know princess, but sometimes, people have their own definition of what's real to them," he replied, trying to smother the laugh that threatened to form because of her thoughtful yet stubborn expression.

She scoffed as she kept all her drawing tools and settled into bed. Jack then told her stories of his day, how he had visited the Easter Bunny and learned how to paint some eggs, although he purposely painted them wrongly just to rile the Pooka up. Kayla enjoyed listening to Jack's story because truth is told, he was an awesome storyteller.

"And then, one of the colored eggs exploded and covered Bunny, turning his fur all red, I swear he was so mad he started gibbering in that Australian accent of his and Santa called him the 'Christmas Bunny'," Jack chuckled as he recalled this afternoon where all the guardians gathered to Bunnymund's place to watch him preparing earlier for Easter.

It was usually times when the New Year was about to roll about that Bunny got super excited and started preparing for Easter, way before the real date.

Jack noted that Kayla's eyes were already closed. He said goodnight to her as he proceeded to lie back and enjoy the sight of fresh snowflakes falling outside and collecting on her windowsill.

~WOC~

"I don't want to go back to the doctor! I told you I'm fine," Kayla retorted as Mrs. Montgomery got her ready for her therapy. Her grandmother sighed.

"Kayla, I told you, the reason for this was because Dr. Abigail can help heal your nightmares, dear, you don't know how terrifying it is for me to hear you scream whenever you have a bad dream," Mrs. Montgomery replied, worry playing on her expression.

Kayla blushed as she remembered how she had woke up screaming again only to be comforted by Jack and her flustered Nana who tried telling her that everything was alright. She didn't want to admit it but she was now getting more and more afraid to sleep at night because of the terrible dreams she has.

Kayla nodded her resolve dissolving as she dutifully made her way to Mrs. Montgomery's car and they were on their way to the doctor's.

Meanwhile, Jack was on his way to North's workshop at the Pole. He needed to ask North for some advice about Kayla's constant nightmares and how he could help her. He barged in the workshop, not even bothering to knock and made his way to North's study.

North granted him permission after Jack asked if he could enter his study. Jack made his way inside to find North hunched over a few stacks of letters. The huge Guardian of Wonder then turned around to face his frosty friend.

"Jack, ma boy, how can I help…" North trailed of as he caught sight of Jack's expression. "What happened?" the usually jolly man asked in a slightly panicked tone.

"She's been having so many nightmares now, North and I can't seem to help her. She's now seeing a therapist as we speak but I can't shake of the nagging feeling that Pitch seems to be behind this," the young guardian said as he ran a hand through his silver hair.

"What kind of nightmares is she having?" North asked.

"She's dreaming of her parents and them dying in a car crash. She wakes up every night screaming and crying and I just don't know what to do!" Jack exclaimed in frustration.

"Jack, slow down, and I'll explain everything that's happening," North said as he stood and made his way over to Jack.

The huge guardian seemed to be finding the appropriate words to explain to his friend. "Jack, personally, I think it's the trauma of losing her parents and being in that accident herself that is causing Kayla to be having all of these nightmares. Subconsciously, she feels haunted by that experience and therefore it shows up in her mind instead. Kayla may _look_ alright, but we don't really know if she _is _alright, do you understand me?" North asked in a gentle tone.

Jack nodded as he processed what North said and then recognition dawned on his face. "Oh gosh, I am such a drama queen," the winter spirit admitted as his face flushed a darker color.

North laughed his booming laugh. "You're not a, what'd you call it? A drama queen Jack, you're just concern. I'd go all crazy too if someone I cared about so much was in trouble or pain," the huge man replied, shrugging his shoulders.

Jack nodded as he felt slightly relieved. "Thanks North, for giving me advice," Jack said in a grateful tone as he turned around.

North answered him back as Jack leaped off in the air again, causing snow to jet out behind him and land o a few of the disgruntled yetis manning the outside door. But what Jack didn't tell North was the voice he heard and somehow, the winter spirit couldn't help but shake the deep feeling that something wrong was going to happen.

~WOC~

After the therapy, Kayla was bushed. She wanted nothing more than to just go back home and sleep.

She spent the whole day answering question after question that was being fired to her by a very persistent Dr. Abigail. The doctor had asked about her nightmares, told her to express her feelings after the accident and even gave her some toys to play with during her "break". Kayla knew that something was up because whenever she started playing, she noticed Dr. Abigail jotting down more notes and whispering to her Nana. She had given her counseling after that and told her to go home and get some rest.

Kayla was well and truly ready for a goodnight's rest. She didn't even bother to take off her shoes as she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

The next morning, Kayla woke up feeling more refreshed than ever as she looked around her room. She noticed her shoes by the side of her bed and there was a note on her drawer. She curiously went to pick it up and tried reading it.

**_Kayla,_**

**_I won't be coming over tonight as I have an important meeting to go to. Stay safe and have a great day. _**

**_P.S: You slept like a huge log last night._**

**_P.P.S: Hope your visit to the doctor went well._**

**_Love,_**

**_Jack. _**

Kayla studied the note as she felt that it was slightly cool at the edges. Jack must've left not long ago. She sighed and put it back on the drawer, already missing her best friend as she got dressed for the day.

~WOC~

Apparently, the "emergency" set off by Tooth was that one section of her castle had mysteriously collapsed and she needed everyone's help to remove the rubble and find all the lost teeth. Everyone silently grumbled but was moved when Tooth started pleading for them to help her. She used her signature puppy dog pout and just like that, everyone agreed to help her.

Jack grumbled a little when he manipulated his snow powers to lift a particularly huge boulder. Just the, someone tapped his shoulder and Jack let the boulder fall back down, swearing a little when it almost hit his foot. He turned around to find Tooth staring at him sheepishly.

"Oops?" she said and shrugged. "I just came by to ask you if you were okay with abandoning Kayla for a while and coming to help me," Tooth said in a slightly nervous tone as she fiddled with her fingers and cast an apologetic look at Jack.

Jack just shrugged, regretting his swearing this now. "It's okay," he reassured the Guardian of Memories. "She'll be in therapy anyway by now," Jack said almost nonchalantly as Tooth's eyes widened.

"Therapy?" she asked in a sharp intake of breath. Oh, Jack realized he forgot to tell everyone what had happened on the Kayla front. _Everyone except North_, he thought.

"Yeah, she's been having a lot of nightmares these days and her grandmother suggested therapy for her to go through with it… I worry about her a lot nowadays," Jack said as his brow furrowed.

Tooth nodded. "I totally understand that feeling Jack and don't worry, if she has a personal guardian like you, I'm sure she'll be safe," Tooth said and suddenly, she pulled Jack into a hug. Jack was shocked when she reacted that way but hugged her back nonetheless.

"Next time, watch your language around Baby Tooth," Tooth scolded as she referred to his swearing when he accidently dropped the boulder. She smiled at him to compensate for her strict tone and flew off to check on the other guardians.

Jack just shook his head as he continued to move the boulders somewhere off. The guardians finished removing the worst of the rubble and sat around sharing recent tales in their lives.

North said that the Pole was quiet now at this time of the year as Bunny interjected whenever he could that he was as busy as a bee since springtime was near and he _did_ represent spring after all. Jack found it amusing that the most level headed of all the guardians could worry about something as small as where the flowers should color up first.

North laughed. "Bunny, that isn't for you to worry about, it's Mother Nature's job to do that, you just make chocolate eggs," the jolly guardian said as he rolled his eyes at the Pooka.

"I know mate, it's just that, I can't help but strategizing where I should put my eggs for Easter," Bunnymund replied as his nose twitched in irritation.

_Scratch that, Bunny made Tooth looks sane whenever Easter came rolling around,_ Jack thought as he too rolled his eyes.

"So what about you, Frostbite? Anything going on?" Bunny asked almost sarcastically.

"Don't call him that," Tooth admonished absentmindedly as she turned to talk to her platoon of mini fairies about where the other teeth should go now that part of the castle was in ruins. Thank goodness all of the teeth were safe during that catastrophe.

"Nah, nothing's really going on much now Fluffy," Jack replied, using the Easter Bunny's most hated nickname.

"How's the little ankle biter?" Bunny asked, one of his ears cocking to one side.

"Which ankle biter?" Jack asked back, chuckling as Baby Tooth joined them and started zipping around Jack.

"Your personal one of course; Kayla," Bunny explained, in a slightly annoyed tone.

Jack frowned. "Nothing much there, she's just fine, I see her only at night and I think I should be there like about… Now?" Jack said as he stood up.

The rest of the guardians also stood up as they said goodbye to Jack before he had to leave. Bunny just looked curiously at Jack before he told him "see ya, mate, and could you please check up on Sophie a lil for me? Thanks Frosty," as Jack nodded. He said his goodbye's as he was about to fly of, Jack turned around to face Bunny.

"Hey Bunny, you may be an idiot, but I still lovveee you," Jack cooed at him, referring to Bunny's drunk revelation the last time they saw each other. The other guardians burst out laughing as Bunny's face flushed.

"Yeah, alright, alright, it was the alcohol speaking anyways," the Pooka said hastily.

Jack smirked. "Yeah right," he interjected one last time before flying off, laughing all the way. He made it back to Kayla's place in record time. He entered the room just as Kayla gasped in shock, flying off from her bed.

"Who's there?" she asked in alarm as her eyes darted wildly around the room.

Jack just furrowed his brow. "It's me, Kayla, can't you see me?" he asked.

Kayla's eyes located his as her body relaxed. She breathed in deeply.

"Sorry, I didn't notice you. Did you put on an invisible potion or something?" she asked, eyes widening in slight panic.

"No, I didn't," Jack said, suddenly worried. "How was your day today?" he asked and sat by her bedside.

Kayla got up to stare at Jack, contemplating her answer before replying.

"It was tough, I had to go through lots of talks and Nana and Dr. Abigail kept on telling me that I should stop talking about you, they said that I was just imagining things and if I wanted to heal, I should let go of things that are in my mind and… Live for the present," Kayla said as her brow wrinkled.

Jack's breathing spiked, the poor girl was forced to reject something she believed in and her grandmother was just _letting her_? She's only _four_ for pete's sake, let the child live! Jack was now completely livid as he got up and paced her room. Kayla noticed Jack's anger but just kept quiet, letting him be in his own thoughts.

Jack seemed to register Kayla's mounting discomfort at his anger and calmed himself down for her sake. He took a deep breath and forced a smile. "It's okay Kayla, you can't let them make you not believe in something if you don't agree with it," he said, sitting back down beside her.

"I know Jack, but it gets in my head sometimes," she said as brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her them.

He seemed to be numb for a second before he finally registered the meaning of her words; she was starting to not believe in him anymore. Maybe the therapy is the one that is forcing her to set her mind differently. Or maybe the pain in her nightmares is causing her to take whatever cure she could find to make her feel better, Jack thought in his head.

Kayla wound her way into his arms as she leaned her head on his chest. "I'm sorry Jack, it's just so scary and I'm scared and I want my mummy and daddy back, and I want to feel better but I still wanna be your friend," the little girl blurted out, her words muffled against his hoodie.

Jack tightened his grip around her as he felt his heart dropping to his belly. He took her face in his hands, looking into her eyes before replying. "Kayla, I would never feel bad if you decided to stop being my friend because one; if it hurts you too much, you could always say no and two; no matter what happens, I will always take care of you even if you can't see me, okay princess?" Jack said as he looked into her brown eyes that was so sad, it pierced him to his soul.

Kayla nodded before holding on to him. The two friends stayed wrapped up in each other's arms the whole night as Kayla fell asleep against his chest. She knew enough from being friends with other little kids that this was the turning point in a friendship. She somehow knew that Jack was staying true to his word by going away to keep her safe.

Jack himself felt as if his whole body was numb. This little girl, whom he met, and loved like a little sister was asking him permission if she could stop believing in him. He knew that he had to let her go because it was for her best and not his. He made the vow to always protect her and be whoever she wants him to be.

Jack looked out of her window as he leaned against her bed frame, supporting his and Kayla's weight. He contemplated everything that had happened in the past one month since he met her. Jack noticed the full moon outside of her window, spilling its light beams on the both of them. He found this awfully comforting as he gazed into the night sky with only the moonlight and a sleeping, broken little girl to keep him company.

**(A/N:) I bet you guys still remember in the ROTG movie when Easter is cancelled and the kids stop believing in Bunnymund? Remember how he became invisible to those kids who supposedly used to believe him? Yeah, so this is the exact same thing that is happening to Jack when Kayla didn't notice him at first and please don't bash Kayla! I heard that kids will believe anything they hear and that was exactly the case with Kayla's therapist and grandma telling her Jack doesn't exist.**

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_**I know this is a drastic turn of events but I promise, Jack and Kayla's story is far from being over. Now if y'all like this story you could favorite, follow or review but I'm a 'feedback' sorta person so review, review, review! Can I reach 30+ worth of reviews before I bring in the next chapter? Capiche? Till the next chapter then, xoxo teeceecee. **_


	8. Chapter 8

Wooh, Chapter 8 you guys! Thank you so much guys for your reviews and (some) constructive critism. Before this chapter starts, I would just like to take time to answer and clarify a few things some of you asked/wondered/thought. To;

Molly Grace 16: I know right, grown up's just don't understand sometimes, pssh.

greenmonkey24: Thanks! I'm doing this based on the ROTG movie where if you don't believe in the guardians, you can't see them. That's why I can't say that the therapist believes Kayla because she doesn't believe in Jack Frost or Santa, or etc. I hope I cleared things on that front :D

savedbygrace94: Wow, I didn't really notice that, but anyway, this chapter does explain everything and lays out a path for new stuff to happen. Thanks for your feedback!

iamninja41: I'm basing this concept of the ROTG movie that shows that most kids do believe in Santa and in the movie, most of them can see him because erm, he's Santa. Kayla didn't notice Jack because she let the therapy get to her and thus not really noticing. As for the must believing part, you just gotta read to find out :D

**I hope I cleared up some questions/musings/thoughts about this story that you guys might have so here you go, Chapter 8. I only write when the reviews are slamming so if you love this story, review, review, review!**

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The first rays of dawn started creeping up as Jack gently put Kayla back down on her bed. He had spent the whole night trying to contain his emotions and nearly rushed out of the window in his haste to leave. He took one last look at her before flinging himself out the window, letting the winds take him wherever they wanted to.

Up in sky, Jack released a strangle sob that he had been holding in he started tearing up. In a split second decision, he decided to visit North and tell him everything that had happened. The huge Guardian of Wonder was starting to be a close confident for Jack to tell all of his feelings to and he decided that North would understand his predicament the most.

He flew to North's workshop and barged in his usual way. They yetis have got so used to the young guardian barging in that they didn't even complain but instead went about their jobs. Jack made his way to North's study but couldn't find him there; he then guessed that North must be in the globe room and made his way there instead.

He found North staring up at the huge globe with all of the children in the World's lights, stroking his beard thoughtfully. He was shaken out of his reverie when Jack cleared his throat.

"Jack, back so soon?" North asked, with an amused glint in his eye that soon faded when he saw the tears in his younger friend's eyes.

North grew slightly alarmed. "Jack! What happened? What's going on?" North asked in a slightly panicked way as he ushered Jack to sit on one of the chairs. Jack just looked at him morosely as he struggled to form the right words.

"She stopped believing in me, North," the young guardian choked. North's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Why would that happen, Jack? You're too big a part in her life to be forgotten just like that," North reassured him gently.

"You don't get it, she feels pressured to not believe in me anymore because her grandmother and therapist say that her dependency on me as an _imaginary friend_ is getting more alarming. So she told me that she wants to make it easier for everyone and just get me out of her life," Jack said as he slumped into his seat, sadness written all over his features.

North's blue eyes went as wide as saucers. "Goodness… She was forced too? What kind of monsters would force a child to not believe in something?" North exclaimed, angrily.

He got up and paced the globe room as Jack watched him with wide eyes. "It's ridiculous, the next time if I see them, I'll drop coals on em' that's for sure…" North continued muttering under his breath before he realized that Jack was still sitting there, dumbfounded.

"I'm sorry my boy, it's just that, stuff like this always gets me riled up," North apologized with a smile. "There's not much I can say to help but if that's her wish, so be it, maybe it's for the best anyway," North said as Jack opened his mouth to argue. "No, no, son, I'm not done yet," he interrupted Jack before continuing. "I'm not saying disappear from her life forever, I'm saying that you should just keep a distance from her until her trauma is deemed cured. Indirectly, you are helping her, anyways," North explained.

Recognition dawned in Jack Frost as he realized what North said was true and as the two friends sat there, discussing, Jack felt lighter. He knew that this would help Kayla no matter how much it hurt him and he hoped with all his heart that someday he could resume being her protector and best friend again.

~WOC~

Meanwhile, in Burgess, little Kayla was just opening her eyes to the morning sunlight. She looked around her room but found no traces of Jack. She suddenly felt a wave of sadness course through her as she remembered telling him that she didn't want to be his friend anymore. She knew last night was probably the last time she would see him again.

Her little fingers toyed with the snowflake pendant around her neck, comforting her. She then got up to get ready for another session with the lady doctor but this time, she felt that things were going to be different.

~WOC~

***12 years later***

Jack had always been watching. He watched his little Kayla grow up from a shy four year old to an ethereal, spirited 16 year old. He saw how she had emerged from her cocoon and matured into this beautiful, doe eyed young woman.

He had kept watch on her all through this past 12 years, protecting her but keeping out of her sight. After a while Kayla's PTSD had been cured and she was almost nightmare free. Jack had silently rejoiced when he saw that she was no longer screaming and waking up in the middle of the night.

Jack had also watched her through every phase of her life. He watched when she started going to elementary, middle school and eventually high school. He watched her having snow fights, crushing on a few guys in school, having friends over and all those little things. He saw her sad too sometimes, crying herself to sleep when people treated her differently because she had no parents. She didn't want to b pitied; she just wanted to fit in with them.

Jack often felt envious of North, Tooth, Sandy and even Bunnymund as they would indirectly be in her life whenever she celebrated Christmas, lost a tooth, had a wonderful dream and went Easter egg hunting with the other kids around the neighborhood. For a while this made him depressed before North told him that whatever they did for her, could never measure up to what Jack had done for her.

The guardians had sympathized with Jack when he told them Kayla didn't believe in him anymore as he also told them the reason why. Tooth even burst out in tears, something that had made Jack emotional. Even Bunny had given him a compassionate look and a pat on the shoulder when he heard that. The Pooka and Jack did have something in common; they both knew what it was like to be disbelieved in and for the very first time, Bunny actually felt sorry for the young guardian.

As for Kayla, she would never admit it to anyone, even her therapist that she still held a little smudge of hope that her winter friend would come and visit her again. She hated herself for thinking that because after years of therapy for her PTSD and having her Nana tell her that creating imaginary friends was unhealthy, Kayla had just categorized Jack as a distant memory, one that would come back distorted to her if she thought about it, like a fever dream. But the funny thing is, she never gave up hope.

Right now, Kayla was on her way back from high school, trudging past the slush, enjoying the cool winter air. She had on a jacket with her favorite jeans and long sleeve top while slinging a bag over her shoulders. Since her house was not that far from her school, she would either walk back home or drive her old Volvo. Now she preferred to walk since one of her favorite seasons had arrived. Kayla loved winter for a lot of reasons; the cold air, snow falling down and the feeling of contentment whenever she felt the cold wind air nipping her nose. She was a total sucker for winter.

Kayla made it to her house and opened her front door. "Nana! I'm home!" she yelled upon entering the house. She slung her bag onto the couch as she made her way to the kitchen.

"I'm right here, dear," her grandmother replied back endearingly as Kayla found her grandma cooking stew in the kitchen.

"Yum, smells good, Nana," Kayla said as she gave her grandmother a peck on her cheek.

"Thanks dear, go up and get cleaned up, dinner will be served shortly," Mrs. Montgomery replied as Kayla turned around and made her way upstairs. Kayla often mused how even though her grandma was not as young as she used to be, but still she won't let Kayla help her in doing some of the cooking.

Kayla got up to her room as she plopped onto the bed, too tired to move. Reluctantly, she got up when she heard her grandmother calling her for dinner. She ate her stew and bread cleaned up and went back up her room in record time to finish her Trigonometry homework.

Night was slowly approaching as the streetlamps below switched on and Kayla felt a certain peace and serenity as she started her homework. After being absorbed in various mathematical formulae for a while, she looked up and noticed the moon shining brightly outside, kissing her beautiful face in its silvery rays. Kayla would never admit it, but whenever she felt sad or needed someone to talk to; she would always turn to the moon for comfort.

"Hey, Lunar," Kayla greeted the moon and she swore the moon shone a little brighter at her greeting. "How are you?" she spoke softly.

"Lunar, sometimes I wonder how I fit here. I feel so lonely in school, I mean I do have a few friends but somehow I just don't feel like I truly do fit in," she giving in to the nagging feeling of loneliness, entranced by the moon's ray.

"It feels like I'm missing, something in my life, like there's something I don't know about," the teenager said as she ran her hands through her hair. Just then her window burst open and Kayla was shocked out of her reverie as she quickly leaped up to close the window. She'd been trying to convince her grandmother to change her window as that blasted thing kept on opening by itself all the time.

Disgruntled, Kayla settled back into bed, too tired to even complete her work as she let unconsciousness wash over her and fell asleep. Her last thoughts were how particularly pretty the moon seemed to be tonight and how perfect it shone from her window.

The next day, Kayla jolted awake before she realized that today was a weekend and she didn't have school. She grumbled and rubbed her eyes. Kayla quickly changed and cleaned herself up before going down to breakfast. She knew that Saturday's meant her grandmother was out doing some grocery shopping and therefore left Kayla with a lot of time in her hands.

She cleaned up the house, completed her chores and with a tired huff, sat on the couch, already starting to doze off. She fell asleep on the couch, tucked comfortably in a fetal position.

Her mind was filled with songs she last heard, conversations she last had and the drawing she was currently working on. She lazed back contentedly as she saw the swirl of thoughts all clouding in her head. Suddenly, she found herself in another memory, one she hadn't accessed in ever since she was four.

Kayla found herself sitting behind the backseat of her parent's car as they drove from her previous home to Burgess to visit her grandma. Kayla was concentrating on her coloring book and eventually fell asleep before waking up to the woods surrounding Burgess. She felt a leap of excitement course through her veins as she thought about spending Christmas with her Nana.

_"Mummy, are we there yet?" she asked as they sped along the main road, the clock showing a quarter to midnight._

_"Almost there, sweetheart, I know it's tiring but you can sleep once we reach Nana's house," her mother replied as she turned to stare at her daughter. The ride was comfortably silent until the car started skidding to the right and then to the left. Kayla screamed as she felt her stomach lurch at the impact of the car hitting something. Her parent's screams were interrupted when they too lurched forward and collided with the dashboard. Kayla cried when she saw blood coming down from her daddy's head._

_Suddenly, the door was flung open and Kayla saw a white haired teenage boy looking into the car. His face was scared and panicky. He quickly located her and his impossibly pale face grew even paler as he reached out for her. Kayla grasped his arms as he pulled her out of the wreckage. She could feel her sobs wrecking through her body. _

_The boy was comforting her, hugging her in his cold arms. Kayla remembered his face but she seem to forget his name. _

The memory suddenly morphed itself into a vortex as Kayla found herself standing in the middle of a dark cave. A groaning to her right caused her head to whip back and she found a cloak figure, hunching towards her. She immediately stepped back as she heard the figure emitting laughter like a maniac. Kayla recognized this dream, as if she was going through a major case of déjà vu.

As if on cue the figure pulled back his hood to reveal its face. Kayla saw that it was mangled and skeletal like. She screamed.

Kayla then woke up in the living room from her nightmare, her clothes stuck to her body in cold sweat. She breathed deeply as she felt how course her vocal chords were from screaming so loud. Kayla shook her head as if to get rid of the lingering feeling of being watched as she screwed her eyes shut. _I haven't been_ _having those kinds of dreams in a long time_, she thought as she tiredly got up and went back to her room, too afraid to doze off again.

That night, she started a new sketch to rid her mind of the anxiety she had as the pencil strokes to paper comforted her. The house was relatively quiet as Kayla drew, too absorbed in her own little world to care about anything else. A cool gust of wind suddenly filled her room as Kayla looked up sharply and noticed that her window was opened again.

"Someday I swear I'm gonna UHU that window together…" she grumbled as she got up and closed the window. Unbeknownst to her, an amused Jack Frost was standing in the middle of her room when he heard her comment about the window. She continued her complaining until she sat back down to continue her drawing.

Jack knew he was being a little too close for comfort, but he came here with a purpose. He had heard her scream in the afternoon and he decided to come and check on her.

"What're drawing there, Kayla?" Jack asked as he stood behind her to look over her shoulder. Jack had always admired her talent in drawing.

The girl just continued drawing as if she hadn't heard anything. Of _course she doesn't_, Jack thought with a hint of bitterness.

She was sketching nature with snow falling down, capping the mountains and making everything look even more ethereal. Kayla stopped sketching as she chewed the end of the pencil between her teeth. Suddenly, she got up and went to her closet. Jack watched on curiously as she rummaged through her stuff before producing a black velvet box. She lifted the lid and peered at its contents, which she hadn't done in almost 10 years.

Jack held his breath as she took out the diamond necklace with the snowflake pendant that he had given to her when she was four. She was fingering the snowflake pendant with a thoughtful look on her face. Her features then softened as a look of tenderness graced her porcelain face and she clutched the snowflake pendant to her heart. Jack didn't know what to feel. Part of him wanted to laugh in relief while the other part just wanted to show Kayla that he was there, watching her.

Kayla sighed as she put the diamond necklace back into the velvet box. She scowled as she wiped her moist eyes and with a huff sat back on her bed. Jack was silently screaming at her to believe again, why couldn't she just believe again?!

He then decided to take matters into his own hands as he quickly frosted her window and drew a figure of a puppy on it. He blew on the drawing and it pranced to life, wiggling its tail and skipping around. He heard Kayla shriek as she saw the figure suddenly prancing about in her room. She shot out of her bed in panic as she searched the room with wide eyes.

Jack then drew another figure on the window, a figure of him and Kayla when she was still a kid. He blew on the image and the tiny figurine came to life. The mini Jack and Kayla were flying, expression of happiness on their faces as they zoomed through the bedroom. Kayla ducked when the figurines flew over her head. A small smile had started forming on her lips as slowly, but wearily, she watched the figures disappearing in a trail of snowflakes.

She almost didn't want to believe it was him. After 12 years, he was back. "Jack," Kayla said softly, hoping and dreading at the same time that it was her childhood best friend.

"I was wondering when you were going to notice," a voice said from behind her as Kayla gasped and spun around. There standing just behind her was Jack himself. He looked exactly the same as she had remembered him to be; white hair, blue sweatshirt and with his staff, his eyes still alight with mischievousness and laughter.

Kayla shook her head as if to shake of a daze as she looked at him in disbelieve.

"Jack? Is that really you?" she asked, still not believing.

"Yeah, it's me alright, hey there princess," Jack said softly as he stood in front of her. Kayla unconsciously took a step back as she lifted her head to gaze at him, shock written all over her features. Jack gave her a few moments to process everything.

After a few moments, she let out a shaky laugh. "Wow, so I 'm not going crazy then," she said. "Wait, I think I forgot to take my antidepressants," Kayla said as she looked terrified for a second.

Jack laughed. "No silly, I'm real, here," he said as he took hold of her hand. Kayla yelped and jerked her hand away, partially from the coldness and partially from the shock.

"Do you believe me now?" Jack asked, his blue gaze prodding her brown ones. Kayla stared; mesmerized by this person whom she thought didn't exist anymore as she slowly nodded.

"Whew, that's better," Jack said and he chuckled.

"Why're you here?" Kayla asked as she snapped out of her shock.

Jack pretended to look hurt. "12 years I haven't seen you and the first question you ask is why I am here," Jack said, faking a look of intense sadness.

Kayla surprised herself and Jack by chuckling at his words. "12 years you've been gone, of course I should ask that," she replied mildly.

Jack's expression turned slightly guilty. "Look, I have some explaining to do, and you might not remember everything that had happened," he said.

Kayla nodded. "You're right, I don't remember much, but I can tell you what I remember, Jack; I remember going for therapy sessions, I remember falling asleep feeling afraid of nightmares and thought that I was going crazy since I kept on reassuring everyone that I had a friend who was named Jack Frost and that he was not a _figment of imagination_ or a _reinvention of winter_ but hey, he even took me flying once. Correct me if I'm wrong because most of the memories are kinda warped and distorted for me," she said, glancing over at him.

Jack just nodded as a look of shock crossed his features when he heard what she had said. "So you do remember Kay, wow, I do have a lot to tell you," he murmured as he ran his hand through his snowy white hair.

Kayla just gave him a steely gaze as she crossed her arms defensively.

"Hey, don't look at me like that! Some of it was your fault anyway," Jack glared back, thrown off by her defensiveness. Suddenly, her defensive stare melted and she glanced at the floor, finding the loose threads on her carpet interesting. Jack felt a pang of guilt when he saw her expression but nonetheless, gestured for her to sit down on her bed so that they could talk.

A sudden feeling of nostalgia crept onto the winter spirit as he remembered how he used to tell Kayla a bedtime story here, on the very same time and place.

Kayla sat gingerly beside him as she waited for him to continue. Jack took a deep breath.

"Kay, what do you remember on the last day we saw each other?" Jack asked, completely serious.

"Hmm… I remember waking up in the morning after another nightmare and waiting for you… But you never came and I wondered why. First I thought that you were just out doing something else. I waited for a week before I realized that you were never coming back," she said, sadness coloring her tone.

Jack's eyes widened. "You seriously waited for me even if you were the one who told me you didn't want me to be around you anymore?" he asked, his face contorted in with confusion.

Now it was Kayla's turn to look confuse. "Huh? Why would I say that? You were like my big brother, how could I just ask you to leave me, just like that?" Kayla asked, cocking her head to one side and staring at Jack skeptically.

Jack shook his head and held up his hands for her to slow down. "Woah, woah, woah, I never left you 'just like that', you were the one who told me it was hard for you to continue your PTSD therapy session because you were being pressured by your Nana and therapist to stop forming attachments to things that 'aren't real'," Jack emphasized.

Kayla looked shock. "How do you know about my PTSD?" she asked, alarmed.

"I kinda overheard what your grandmother was saying when she talked to your therapist on the phone," the winter spirit admitted, sheepishly. "But that doesn't matter, what does though is that you were the one who started to forget about me first," Jack said, trying to keep the accusatory tone out of his voice.

"What? How did that happen?" Kayla asked, irritation coloring her tone. She could never imagine she would have done that now that she knew everything she classified as a 'fever dream' was real.

Jack sighed and got up to pace around the room. "The last night we saw each other, I entered through your window and you seemed to not see me. That's when I knew that the therapy was changing your mindset and that you had begun to stop believing in me," the winter spirit said, frowning when he recalled that memory.

"You then told me everything about how the grownups were pressuring you to stop believing in me and you started believing them and eventually stopped believing in me," Jack explained, noting Kayla's stunned silence.

"I don't remember that ever happening," she mumbled as Jack sat down and tentatively put his hand on her shoulders to comfort her.

"It's okay, I read that PTSD sometimes can affect people by making them forget some memories," Jack said reassuringly.

"I seriously did that? Wow…" Kayla said disbelieving as she stared at her shoes.

Jack just kept silent, letting her process everything that had happened.

"Jack… I'm sorry for not believing in you, you must've felt hurt," Kayla apologized softly, never daring to look the guardian in his eye.

Jack smiled softly as he used his fingers to tilt her face up. "Kay, I may have been sad by what you did, but that's all in the past now, okay?" Jack said as he gave her a tentative smile.

Kayla replied his smile with a hesitant one, but nonetheless she felt better. Her expression then grew slightly sad.

"Why would they do that to me, Jack? How could they tell something like that to me, that you didn't exist?" Kayla asked sadly.

Jack huffed; this was going to take a whole lot of explanation.

"Kay, you were just four when you were in that accident. They said that symptoms of PTSD most likely make people imagine stuff that are really not there, that's why forgetting about those said stuff is really important in the healing process," Jack explained, his face screwed up in remembering the facts correctly. Kayla giggled when she saw his face that way.

"And also, creating things that were not there was in a way, unhealthy; so that's why they had to force you to grow up and stop making imaginary friends," Jack said and he smiled at the teen.

Kayla nodded. "Thanks for explaining to me, I guess I was too young to remember anything that happened back then," she said, worrying her bottom lip.

Jack mentally rolled his eyes. _That_ was an understatement.

Kayla shook her head. "But that still doesn't explain why you're here now, after you were gone for so long," she said in a worried tone.

"Fine, I'll explain then why I'm here," the winter spirit said as he sighed. "First of, you started believing in me again, after so long, that's why I decided to show myself to you-"

Kayla's face turned into an expression of shock and understanding. "You mean when I started thinking about you the moment I remembered the snowflake pendant," Kayla said, revelation written all over her face.

Jack nodded and continued his explanation. "Second, your nightmares are coming back again," he stated.

Now, Kayla just looked plain confused. "My nightmares?" she asked.

"Yeah, the ones which you haven't been having for almost 12 years," Jack replied, in an obvious tone.

Kayla was shocked. Jack, whom she's met for less than 30 minutes, knows more about her than her own self. She found it to be really unnerving.

"You mean the ones that are so creepy the always make me scream?" Kayla questioned, tentatively, hoping against hope that this bit of information was not gonna come true.

The guardian nodded as he took in her nervous state. The poor girl was twisting and tugging her brown hair so much, a few strands had already broke.

"What's that mean?" the young girl asked her friend softly.

Jack replied, in all honesty. "It means that Pitch is back and he's tormenting you for some weird reason," the winter spirit replied morosely.

"Pitch?" Kayla asked, her voice raising an octave higher. "Who the heck is he?" she demanded, still confuse as to why this was such a bad thing.

Jack had forgotten that Kayla didn't know who Pitch was and that only a few people did.

He scratched his head thoughtfully as he figured out how to phrase this. "Kayla, do you still remember the boogeyman?" Jack asked, his blue eyes probing.

Kayla nodded. "He's the one who disturbs kids in the middle of the night and gives them nightmares," Kayla said, realization slowly dawning.

"I thought he was just a myth?" Kayla whispered incredulously.

"Yeah, and Jack Frost just happens to be a wind nipping at your nose," Jack replied sarcastically. Kayla rolled her eyes but then her expression was replaced by fear.

"But I'm not a kid anymore, what could he possibly want from me?" Kayla squeaked.

That's when she saw Jack growing serious as he looked his human friend in the eye. "That's the funny thing; we defeated him almost 22 years ago. I mean, nightmares still do exist because stuff like that is in a children's subconscious but something's telling me that this time, it's really him," Jack explained, only to be met by Kayla's disbelieving stare.

"He's trying to take revenge on me because I was the one who defeated him," Jack explained, letting her absorb everything.

The young teen looked shock and slightly awestruck. "You defeated the boogeyman? Woah, that's flipping awesome," she said, excitement hinting her features. "But I still don't get it, why is he targeting me the most?" Kayla asked, suddenly worried.

Jack frowned. "My theory is that, maybe, he knows that I'm always around you, and that you're one of my believers, so that's why he's setting his sights on you now," Jack said, a look of annoyance on his face.

"You're always around me? I'm one of your believers? So that means he has targeted a few other people too before right?" Kayla stated, trying to wrap her head around everything.

"Yes, Kayla, I promised you when you were younger that I would always protect you and never let you in harm's way; and yes, he has targeted a few of my friends/believers to, it's this personal vendetta thing he has for me," Jack shrugged, completely nonchalant.

"Who are your other believers then?" Kayla asked, momentarily intrigued.

"Well, one of them is Jamie Bennett and he's one of my closes friends, I think of him as a younger brother," Jack replied.

Kayla gasped. "You mean Mr. Bennett? As in, Catherine Bennett's dad?" Kayla asked, referring to Jamie's young daughter who was barely even a year old. She had seen Mr. Bennett with his wife and daughter strolling around the park sometimes.

Jack nodded. "The very same one," Jack replied, smiling at the memory of meeting Jamie's daughter for the very first time.

Kayla chuckled. "That explains everything, I've always liked Mr. Bennett, he's always so good with kids," Kayla admitted.

Jack laughed. "That's because he still is one," Jack laughed, good naturedly, thinking about his brother and how he had complained to Jack that he just couldn't understand how babies worked.

The atmosphere then suddenly turned tense. "Is he dangerous?" Kayla quipped up, fearing the answer.

"A little bit, yes, but if you don't show your fear to him, he wouldn't harm you," Jack explained, reassuring Kayla.

Kayla's eyes then shot up as Jack just shrugged.

The winter spirit then remembered one very important component of his tale and he nearly smacked his head in when he realized he had forgotten about it. Jack then realized something. He had completely messed up.

"Oh, no, Kayla, there's something I forgot!" Jack exclaimed, panic coloring the edge of his tone.

Kayla's brow furrowed as she asked him what was wrong.

"Look, on the night you had your first nightmare, I heard a voice, it was weak and I couldn't distinguish it. When I asked it who it was, it just replied that it wasn't his time yet, and when I asked who was it, that voice just replied that he was my worst nightmare," Jack explained, rushing to get out the words as the look of panic on Kayla's face grew even more pronounced.

"Wh-What?" Kayla stuttered, too shock to even move.

"Oh, no, this is bad, so very, very bad," the winter spirit said as he got up and paced her bedroom, running his hand through his hair and mentally cursing how distracted he had been with Kayla's predicament that he could let something that dangerous just pass by without informing anyone.

Kayla just stared at Jack in shocked. "You mean you forgot to tell the other guardians?" Kayla asked.

Jack nodded and smacked his forehead. "Gah, how could've I had been so stupid! I need to see the others now," Jack said, already pacing around the room.

"Wait, I'll come with you," the teen said as she stood up with a determined look on her face.

"You can't Kay, I'll be flying to the North Pole and in case you haven't noticed, you'll freeze to death even before we reach there, plus how're you gonna explain to your grandma that you'll be gone," Jack asked. Kayla's confidence faltered, and then, she had an idea.

"Simple, I'll be going for a sleepover," Kayla said, glancing at the clock and noted happily that the time was just 10.

Before Jack could even protest, Kayla had taken out a duffle bag from her closet and quickly stuffed a few items from her closet to as the winter spirit looked on.

She picked up her duffel bag and went straight to her grandmother's room where Mrs. Montgomery was still awake. Kayla popped her head in to find her grandmother propped up by the bed, reading a book.

"Nana, do you mind if I go for a sleepover at Madison's house? Her parents aren't in for a week and she's down with the cold," Kayla said, her eyes pleading. "She says it's an emergency since she's feeling dizzy and I feel bad so I want to help her," Kayla said, telling half of the truths since her best friend's parents were out for a week due to a business trip.

Mrs. Montgomery put down the book as she gazed thoughtfully at her granddaughter. "Alright, you can go," she said. "But be back before this Friday okay? And tell Madison I wish her well," her grandma said, smiling kindly at Kayla.

"You sure you'll be able to take care of yourself for a few days?" Kayla asked, suddenly worried for her Nana's health.

Mrs. Montgomery rolled her eyes, something she rarely does nowadays. "Sweetheart, I've been taking care of myself ever since your grandpa passed away, of course I'll be fine," she snorted.

"Okay then, I'll be back by this Friday, bye Nana, and thanks," Kayla said as she quickly scooted out of her grandmother's room before her Nana could change her mind.

Jack was standing by the hallway, slightly impressed by her lying skills but still disapproving of her actions. The teen just breezed by her winter friend with a smirk on her face as Jack shook his head. She race back to her room to collect more clothes.

"So, you're gonna drive all the way to the North Pole," Jack said as Kayla jumped when she heard his voice.

"I was hoping maybe knew how to get there," Kayla admitted, her voice hinting with a slight guilt. "You better not make me homeless for one week, Jack Frost," Kayla said as her tone grew accusatory.

Jack rolled his eyes before he remembered something. He fished in the pocket of his hoodie and his fingers grasped on a cool round object. "I think I know how we're gonna get there," the winter spirit smirked as he held up a snow globe for Kayla to see. That snow globe was the very one that North always used to teleport to and fro.

"A snow globe, seriously?" Kayla asked, skeptically.

Jack laughed at her expression before telling her that Santa uses this snow globes to travel around much faster than he ever could on reindeer.

Kayla scrunched up her brows but nevertheless agreed as she took her duffle bag and headed out to start her car with a still amused Jack Frost following her. Once her car had started, she quickly got in. She then realized that Jack had not followed her and she rolled her windows down to stare at the winter spirit standing outside.

"Well?" Kayla prompted.

Jack just shook his head. "I hate cars, maybe I'll just fly," he suggested.

Kayla nodded. "Okay then, just follow my car, I need to hide it somewhere before we go to the North Pole," she said as she realized how ridiculous that sounded. "Are you sure I'm not hallucinating and need my antidepressants?" Kayla asked, her brown eyes probing Jack's blue ones.

Jack just laughed as he took off in the air and Kayla chuckled too as she drove of her driveway and down the street. She knew where exactly to keep her car for the whole time she was there.

She drove for a few minutes before finding a secluded alley where she knew no one often visited or came around. It was near an abandoned street where nobody dared to go. Kayla knew her car would be safe there. She got out just in time as Jack landed beside her.

Jack gestured to the surroundings. "Nice place," he said, as Kayla laughed at his sarcasm.

Jack then took out his snow globe as he looked at Kayla. Kayla imperceptibly nodded as she braced herself for this. She didn't know what was going to happen, but she knew that this would be something amazing and totally different.

Jack then threw the snow globe on the ground as a multi colored opened up before the awed teen's eyes. Jack took a step forward and glanced at her. She stepped up as he took her hand and together they jumped through the portal. Kayla shrieked as she felt herself getting sucked in the colorful vortex, her grip on Jack's hand tight as the young guardian glanced at her, laughing a carefree laugh.

All too soon, the ride was over as Kayla's feet found purchase on the snowy ground. The cold wind whipped at her eyes and she regretted not bringing a thicker sweater. Jack then landed next to her as he let go of her hand and pointed in direction in front of her.

Kayla squinted and gasped. They were just a few feet from a majestic building and as she looked around, she knew they were standing atop a cliff as the wind there was particularly colder.

She looked around and couldn't help the awestruck gasped that left her mouth. Santa's house was huge, majestic as lights seemingly floated around from the windows. The doorway was huge and it reminded her of one of those olden days' mansions but it also had a medieval feel with spires and slanting roofs and she knew that there was probably a courtyard in there somewhere.

"Welcome, to Santa's workshop," Jack whispered in her ear as he took her hand and lead her in.

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**Well, hope you guys loved this chapter. And remember, review, review and oh, yeah, before I forget, REVIEW! xoxo teeceecee.**


	9. Chapter 9

_Hey everyone! Once again I wanna thank those who reviewed WOC. Some of your comments were so touching I swear I teared up wtf. Would you believe that this whole chapter was actually inspired by Snow Patrol's "What If The Storm Ends"? It's such an epic song, and if you haven't heard it yet, seriously, go do it. Goosebumps guaranteed. It's even the OST for 'Epic'. Well, enough rambling, here ya go, Chapter 9._

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__Where we last stopped:

**_All too soon, the ride was over as Kayla's feet found purchase on the snowy ground. The cold wind whipped at her eyes and she regretted not bringing a thicker sweater. Jack then landed next to her as he let go of her hand and pointed in direction in front of her._**

**_Kayla squinted and gasped. They were just a few feet from a majestic building and as she looked around, she knew they were standing atop a cliff as the wind there was particularly colder._**

**_She looked around and couldn't help the awestruck gasped that left her mouth. Santa's house was huge, majestic as lights floated around. The doorway was huge and it reminded her of one of those olden days' mansions but it also had a medieval feel with spires and slanting roofs and she knew that there was probably a courtyard in there somewhere._**

**_"Welcome, to Santa's workshop," Jack whispered in her ear as he took her hand and lead her in._**

Kayla stepped in to the warm interior that smelled like hot chocolate and gingerbread cookies gratefully. Jack then followed her and they both walked up the corridor. _Funny , there seemed to be no yetis around here, _Jack led the way to North's study where he knew the giant guardian would be.

They round up a corner and came face to face with a yeti, Phil to be exact who was also walking down the corridor. Kayla let out a glass breaking shriek as she ran behind Jack for cover. Phil, was also shock by their sudden appearance that he too shrieked and started grumbling in Yetish.

Jack held Kayla to him as he doubled over with laughter. Kayla then hit his shoulder to make sure he wasn't going crazy.

"Jack! What's wrong with you?" Kayla shrieked again as she swore that her friend had gone bananas.

"What's with all this commotion? This better not be another cookie dough fight," a stern voice said as the figure of North came from behind a slightly shaken Phil who was still mumbling in Yetish.

North looked in shock at the terrified girl standing behind Jack who was still recovering from his laughter fit.

Jack had calmed down and managed to get something out besides his laughter. "Aww, Kay, you should have seen your face man, that was priceless!" Jack said as Kayla just looked at him in confusion, having somewhat calmed down from her scare.

"This is Phil, the Yeti and he works for Santa, who just so happens to be old North standing there," he said as he gestured at North who looked a little disgruntled at being called old but nonetheless, he gave a warm smile to Kayla.

He then told Phil to go back to the yeti's quarters as the giant Yeti mumbled and trudged off. North then turned back to the both of them to find Kayla giggling at her scare and Jack chuckling.

"You must be Kayla Montgomery, Jack's human friend?" North said kindly as he held out his hand.

Kayla's jaw dropped open as she suddenly realized she was face to face with Santa Claus. _The_ Santa Claus. "Hi, you must be Santa," she asked, her eyes widening as she grasped his arm.

North then unexpectedly pulled her into a hug. "There's no need for all those formalities, come now, any friend of Jack is a friend of ours," North said as he released a daze looking Kayla. She still could not believe that she was standing right in front of Santa himself.

"Oh, and call me North, Santa is nice but North is much preferred," North said in his gruff Russian accent, his tone warm and friendly.

Kayla just chuckled as she nodded.

"So, Jack, what brings you to the Pole here at this time?" North asked, turning back to his fellow guardian who was staring at North and Kayla's exchange with a small smile that soon faded when he heard that question.

"North, I have some relatively bad news, I have to tell," Jack said and he quickly explained about the fact that he had completely omitted the story of how he had heard a strange voice during the first night of Kayla's nightmares and he had completely forgotten to tell the other guardians that because he was too distracted by Kayla's problem.

North noted how when Jack told him that he was worried for Kayla, the winter spirits eyes glanced at his friend with a look of warmth and tenderness, before his blue eyes frosted over with shame.

"I screwed up big time, North," Jack said, and he looked at Kayla who was just listening to his explanation with terse eyes.

North looked from human to guardian and back again. The Guardian of Wonder was silent for a moment.

"Jack, there has been no sign of Pitch for almost 22 years; we could rule the possibility of him being back but at what proof?" North asked, worry etched onto his usually jolly face.

"Kayla's nightmares have come back again," the young guardian replied as his tone was calm but left no room for argument.

"We'll have a meeting with the rest of the guardians soon, but since you both are probably tired from today and that Tooth and Sandy will be busy tonight, we can postpone it to tomorrow," North said kindly and firmly at the same time, leaving no room for the two teens to argue.

"Jack, could you please escort Kayla to the guest room," he asked as Jack nodded and lead Kayla to the said room.

North shook his head as he watched the both of them walk away. He couldn't help shaking of the feeling in his belly that Jack and Kayla's lives were going to be more intertwined then they thought.

Jack escorted Kayla to the room, running a little commentary on each room they pass.

"And here's your room, it's next to mine since I hate being next to Bunny's room," Jack said in an annoyed tone. She bid thanked him and bid him goodnight before closing the door, surprised at the interior of the room.

It was warm and had a Christmas-y feel to it. Of course it does, this is Santa's workshop we're talking about, Kayla thought sarcastically as she changed and laid in the soft king size bed. She had started to drift of but somehow couldn't as every time she closed her eyes, she would get flashes from everything that Jack had told her and honestly, it kinda scared her.

She tossed and turned for what felt like hours before she decided she couldn't sleep and got up to wonder around her room. Eventually she got bored and decided to explore a little of Santa's workshop.

She opened her door stealthily and crept outside, closing the door with a soft click. She then ventured down the corridor and somehow found herself in a huge room with a globe in the middle of it. She stared, fascinated at the globe as it seemed to be twinkling with a million speck of lights. Her attention was then diverted by a glowing light that seem to spill out from an opening in the roof above.

Kayla made her way to the silver of moonlight and saw the full moon, much closer than she would have expected as she gasped and stepped back in shock. The moon looked as if it was merely feet away from the opening of the roof when she knew that the moon wasn't _supposed_ to be _this_ close.

Nonetheless, she sat down on the floor as she greeted the moon and continued staring at its beauty, entranced by the light it seemed to emanate and spill across the room. Kayla couldn't help but think that the moon's close proximity to this place wasn't something strange and she felt as if the moon did belong here. As if it was the guardian's personal best friend.

"Beautiful isn't it?" a familiar voice interrupted her reverie as Kayla turned to find Jack at the doorway, smiling at her. She noticed that he was no longer wearing his hoodie but instead opted for a plain white t-shirt but still donning his brown pants.

Kayla nodded as Jack sat next to her and stared at the moon.

"Since Santa, you and the Tooth fairy or whoever else exists… Do werewolves exist too?" Kayla asked as she looked at her winter friend.

Jack chuckled. "I haven't really met one before but if I do, then I'll let you know," he said, looking amused.

"Does the moon always appear this close?" Kayla whispered as she glanced at Jack. Jack looked at her and was struck by how pretty she looked under the moonlight, her porcelain skin glowing and brown hair made dark, cascading down her shoulders, her elegant features prominent. Jack had to shake his head to clear the sudden daze.

"Uhm, yeah, that's the Man in Moon," he replied, shrugging.

Kayla's eyes widened. "Man in Moon? Who is he? You mean I've been talking to a real… Person this whole time?" she asked, doubt coloring her features.

Jack chuckled, remembering that she didn't know much about this life. "He was the first guardian ever," Jack said as he watched Kayla's eyes widened. She gaped at him.

"The moon really was the first guardian. He was the protector of children's dreams. We call him Manny, or sometimes Tsar Lunar. He's the one who chooses who becomes a guardian and more often than not, he's the one who picks us to become a spirit," Jack explained. Kayla was still gaping at him.

"Whoa… So you were chosen by a moon the night you became Jack Frost?" the teen asked, looking awestruck.

Jack couldn't help the puff of pride he felt when he nodded.

"How does the moon choose spirits then?" Kayla asked, really curious to know the answer.

"He normally chooses someone based on something within that person… A center if you will call it. If you have something in you that is deem worthy, the Man in Moon would choose you," Jack replied.

"So, what did he find in you to change you to a guardian?" Kayla asked.

Jack tensed slightly at her question. "He chose me because of my self- sacrifice to save another person's life," Jack replied softly, watching the teen's expression closely.

So far, Kayla just looked cautiously curious as she motioned for him to continue.

"I saved my sister once, when we went ice-skating. The ice was too thin and was cracking below her feet, she started panicking and I told her everything was going to be alright. So I let her think it was just a game she was playing and managed to safe her with my staff. I didn't realize that I was standing on the same patch of thin ice so I fell in. I never really knew what happened, but when I woke up, the moon was the first thing I saw," Jack said impassively as he stared at the moon, not daring to look at her reaction. "Then when I woke up, and found out about my powers. I quickly flew to my village and called for people but no one noticed me, that was when I realized I was dead," Jack said, his tone impassive.

Jack was surprised when he felt her warm hand gently grasp his cold one. He stared down at her and found only compassion in her eyes.

"I know what it's like to feel that way Jack, you're not alone," she said as she smiled kindly at him. He reciprocated her smile and they continued to gaze at the moon in silence.

Kayla then felt her eyes grow heavy and she wished Jack goodnight before going back to her room. That night, she dreamed of Jack, his blue eyes alight in happiness when he was skating with his sister but quickly teared up when he realized that nobody could hear him anymore.

Kayla woke up the next morning to a cold sunlight filtering her room; she rubbed her eyes and got up to change. She layered another sweater on as she realized how cold it was. She shivered as she made her way to Jack's room. Kayla was seriously hungry but she had forgotten where the kitchen was.

Her face flamed up in embarrassment as her stomach grumbled. She quickly knocked on the door and was greeted with a slightly annoyed Jack Frost. Jack's expression softened when he found Kayla standing awkwardly by the doorway.

"I couldn't find the kitchen and I'm freaking starving," Kayla admitted in a shy voice as she peeked at his expression.

Jack laughed. "I thought you were one of the yetis who always loved knocking on my door and disturbing me when I'm resting," Jack said nonchalantly. "Sometimes, I think he's even worse than me," the winter spirit grumbled as he ushered Kayla to the North's huge kitchen.

Jack wouldn't admit it but he loved North's Workshop because it felt so familiar and comforting. Well, he _couldn't_ admit it because he still found that lake where he first woke up to be like a first home. Jack called a few elves who were hanging around the kitchen to prepare breakfast. The little elves all jingled in excitement as they quickly whisked out ingredients before Kayla's eyes.

The winter spirit then sat down beside her on the table as they saw the elves prepare a breakfast of warm milk and fruit cake for her. They sat it down in front of her as they giggled in excitement as this was the first time a human would sample their cakes. Kayla took a bite out of a slice and exclaimed it was the best fruit cake she had ever tasted. The elves giggled and blushed when they heard her compliment and quickly scampered of to finish another task as she finished her breakfast.

North then walked in and saw the two teens making small talk as Kayla ate her breakfast.

"Good morning everyone, I hope you slept well Kayla," North said, his eyes twinkling.

"Morning North, and yeah, I found the moon very fascinating last night," Kayla said, her eyes alight with excitement. "And your elves were very friendly and cute."

North nodded benignly. "Very good, I see you've met Manny and my elves," North said, noting that the teen looked as if she was a little kid stuck in Santa's Workshop, her whole demeanor screamed excitement. North gave a small chuckle as he sat beside Jack.

His jolly face then turned suddenly serious as he told the both of them the agenda for today. "Kayla, the guardians will be here any minute so I suggest you wash up and meet us in the globe room, alright? That means you too, Jack," the huge guardian said in a mock strict tone as Jack just nodded docilely.

North then stood up and walked back the way he came from. Kayla snickered.

"What's that all about? I've never seen you act so obedient like that before," Kayla said as she poked the winter spirit in his side.

Jack laughed and told her "it's a long story" as he gestured for her to finish up and led her to the globe room. Inside, they could hear a few voices seemingly disagreeing with each other as Kayla and Jack braced themselves and walked in.

The voices then quiet down as Kayla had to take a double take when she saw the other 3 guardians. There seemed to be a huge rabbit sitting now next to a golden sand man and on the golden man's right, something that looked like a cross between a hummingbird and a human girl. Kayla then realized that that must be the Tooth Fairy. She gave them a small smile.

Immediately, the Tooth Fairy flitted over to her and started jabbering. Kayla couldn't quite keep up and felt shock when she put her fingers into the teen's mouth.

"Kayla Megan Montgomery, oh, your teeth were always one of the cleanest ones, I bet you brush them after every meal," the Tooth Fairy hummed excitedly as she prodded the still shock teen's gums.

"Mmmhhmnng," Kayla said around her fingers and the huge rabbit seem to chuckle a little.

"Tooth, fingers out of her mouth," the bunny said as he sauntered to the both of them. Tooth then retracted her fingers as she smiled sheepishly.

"The name's Bunnymund, and you must be little Kayla. Though I don't think you look that little anymore," the Pooka said as he offered her a friendly smile.

Kayla noted that he had a very distinct Australian accent. "Are you the Easter Bunny?" Kayla asked, a little dumbstruck. The rabbit nodded and chuckled.

"I like your Australian accent," Kayla admitted, already liking Bunnymund. She did feel a little bit terrified though that he was so… _Tall_, but she liked him nonetheless.

The last one who greeted her was the little golden man who floated to Kayla and shook her hand. "Lemme guess, the sandman right?" Kayla asked as she looked down at him in awe.

Sandy nodded as he started shooting images above his head made up of sand but it was too fast so she couldn't catch it. She laughed and told him to slow down. The golden man just shrugged and gave a silent laugh.

Through it all, Jack was watching Kayla's exchange with the rest of the guardians with a small smile. _She seemed to really fit in with all of us, _Jack thought as he saw Kayla chatting animatedly with Bunnymund about her last Easter egg hunt and asking him random questions about how he prepared for Easter. The huge Pooka answered back as truthfully as he could while always maintaining a small smile. Jack was surprise; Kayla must be someone special to get that _kind of reaction_ out of _Bunnymund._

North then cleared his throat. As much as he loved the other guardians bonding with a child that still believes in them way beyond her believing age that was not the reason that they were gathered here.

"I believe Jack has something he wanted to tell us," North prodded Jack as the winter spirit duck down his head.

Jack nodded. "There was something I kinda… Forgot to tell you guys that happened 22 years ago," Jack said as he stared at the ground, recounting the tale of how the first night when Kayla had her nightmare, he had heard voices and then how her nightmares have started up again. Through the whole explanation, none of the other guardians said anything except throwing worried looks at each other and staring compassionately at Kayla.

"He didn't know what to make of it, my nightmares were almost gone by the time I was 7. Everyone thought it was the PTSD but then, the same nightmares have started back up again so Jack is guessing that it might be Pitch," Kayla said, defending her friend.

The other guardians were silent for a moment before they burst out in several questions all at the same time. Jack had to calm them down before he could answer anything. Kayla just looked slightly scared.

"He's back? But how can that be? We've never even heard anything from him at all?" Tooth said, fiddling with her hands nervously.

"Mate, how could'ya been so… So, dumb not to tell us anything like this the moment it happens?" Bunnymund said in exasperation. The kid really could get under his nerves sometimes.

Jack just looked frustrated as Kayla's eyes widened when she saw the animosity between Jack and Bunnymund.

Jack then tried to explain but Tooth calmed Bunnymund down before he could do some major damage between his friendship with Jack. Tooth just looked at Kayla and shrug as if to say that stuff like this is pretty normal.

North quieted the two bickering guardians as Jack had unknowingly floated up to Bunnymund's face level to argue with the huge Pooka. They both stood glaring at each other, hate written clearly on their face.

"Guys, honest to goodness, it wasn't his fault," Kayla piped up. "Jack was worried and I guess sometimes when you worry, something like hearing a voice gets push to the back of your mind," Kayla said, reasoning with the other guardians. The rest of them were silent, trying to process her words.

North then looked up, suddenly weary. "Kayla is right; we can't blame Jack for this. And besides, there has been no sign of Pitch for almost 22 years. If something suspicious happens, then we take a look at it, if not, let's just stay alert," North said as he looked Kayla in the eye. Kayla nodded as one by one the guardians except Jack dispersed with varying looks of compassion and worry on their face. Tooth took her hand and squeezed it before leaving.

Jack and Kayla were the last people there and the winter spirit looked at her in a remorseful way. Kayla walked to him and put her arms around his shoulders. Stunned, Jack flinched but let her embrace him anyway, even letting his arms wound around her waist. He felt better from her embrace; it was like her silently telling him that everything was going to okay and it wasn't his fault. It was then that Jack Frost suddenly realized how much he missed his human friend.

Little did they know that far away, in the cold blizzards of Alaska, Pitch Black was standing with his legion of fearlings, all rearing their ugly heads and bristling against the cold wind.

"Hush now, little ones, our time is near," the boogeyman said malevolently as the fearlings suddenly shifted and became one, growing over 20 feet tall. The writhing mass of shadows then took a frightening form of a demon as it released a loud cry. Pitch laughed as he floated to the top of the demon and the shadows split themselves to five entities, all hell bent on their master's revenge.

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_*covers eyes* how was it? If you guys like it, please review! And if you didn't really, you could always leave me constructive comments in the REVIEW area *hint hint*. *comes clean* I ain't a mind reader so I want to know if you guys like the direction of my story or if you hate it,ship it etc. So, review, review, review! Till the next chapter. Lots of love, teeceecee._


	10. Chapter 10

Okay, so this chapter is gonna be something I've never written before. Like ever. So I hope it goes well. Lots of drama, action and a new romance. Give this chappie some love, people!

Thank you guys so much for your sweet reviews and support! You guys rock! *winks*

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Where we last stop:

**_Jack and Kayla were the last people there and the winter spirit looked at her in a remorseful way. Kayla walked to him and put her arms around his shoulders. Stunned, Jack flinched but let her embrace him anyway, even letting his arms wound around her waist. He felt better from her embrace; it was like her silently telling him that everything was going to okay and it wasn't his fault. It was then that Jack Frost suddenly realized how much he missed his human friend._**

**_Little did they know that far away, in the cold blizzards of Alaska, Pitch Black was standing with his legion of fearlings, all rearing their ugly heads and bristling against the cold wind._**

**_"Hush now, little ones, our time is near," the boogeyman said malevolently as the fearlings suddenly shifted and became one, growing over 20 feet tall. The writhing mass of shadows then took a frightening form of a demon as it released a loud cry. Pitch laughed as he floated to the top of the demon and the shadows split themselves to five entities, all hell bent on their master's revenge._**

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Meanwhile, back at the workshop, the atmosphere was very tense as the guardians all seemed to be waiting for something. It was then that Tooth and Sandy announced that they had a night's job to do, and left the workshop. Kayla was up in her room, sketching and humming. She didn't notice when Jack had entered her room to call her. He stood by the doorway, admiring her drawing and then cleared his throat.

Kayla jumped from her sit and turned around to face her friend with a mock glare. "Can't you see I'm trying to draw here, Frosty?" she grumbled as Jack groaned.

'Don't tell me Bunnymund put you up to that," Jack said as Kayla tried to smother her grin before it was too late.

"Well, ankle biter, I got bored and since you're the only one not mad at me, I wanna show you something," Jack said, excitement sparkling in his eyes. This had piqued Kayla's interest as she put down her drawing book.

"You got my attention now, Frost, what is it?" Kayla asked, grinning at him. Jack reciprocated back her grin as he gestured for her to follow him. Kayla got up and followed him where he led her outside of North's workshop.

"Kay, do you still remember the time when you were four and I took you flying?" Jack asked, with a happy glint in his eyes.

"Yeah…" Kayla trialed of suspiciously, folding her arms together.

Without warning, Jack scooped her up, bridal style and flung himself into the air. Kayla let out a terrified screech as she found herself looking down at North's workshop. How funny it seems that she thought it was really huge, when up here it seemed as small as a building block. Kayla clung to Jack, terrified and also out of coldness. The weather was barely bearable as there were no winds blowing but this was still Antarctica we were talking about.

Kayla shivered as realization hit her that maybe Jack was manipulating the winds not to blow in their direction. "Jack! What the…? You can't just go scooping girls up lifting them high up in the air," Kayla shrieked as she held onto the winter spirit tighter.

Jack just chuckled. "Relax Kay, I want to show you something, I promise that it's going to be awesome," Jack said as Kayla shook her head stubbornly but went along with it.

She squinted her eyes against the frozen wind, to exhilarate to feel the cold. Then Jack landed softly on the ground and Kayla rubbed her eyes to find that they were in a frozen meadow of some sorts, far away from the Workshop. Kayla stopped to admire the trees and a frozen river nearby as Jack put her down gently on the ground.

The place looked like a magical winter wonderland.

"Whoa," Kayla breathed, walking around the meadow, touching the frozen trees and admiring the frost covering the tree bark.

"Don't tell me you did all this, Jack?" Kayla said her voice breathless with excitement. Jack smirked but shook his head.

"I had nothing to do with any of this, but this meadow isn't the reason why I brought you here, I wanted to show you snow flowers," Jack said, walking around the clearing and apparently looking for something.

Kayla grew curious. "Snow flowers? You mean like flowers that grow in the snow?" Kayla asked, trying to pry the answer from Jack.

"No, these are different… Ah, here we go," Jack said as he gestured for Kayla to observe a tree bark on a frozen tree. Kayla noticed that there were small spikes of flowers growing on the bark and she stared at them admiringly, reaching out to touch them. They melted instantly at her touch and Kayla giggled.

"How'd you do this?" Kayla asked as she turned to Jack with wonder filled in her eyes.

Jack chuckled. "I told you this is none of my doing, it's all the wonders of the Arctic," Jack replied honestly. "Snow flowers develop on a thin, fresh layer of ice and only when there is a large difference between the temperature on the ice surface and in the air - at least 20 °C," Jack explained as he touched the snow flowers. They seem to gravitate towards his touch as the ice flowers expanded and grew even more beautiful.

For a moment, Kayla was envious but she shook her head and watched as he manipulated the snow flowers into more beautiful versions. She then started firing question after question about snow and how it varies around different parts of the world. Jack just shook his head in amusement and answered all of her questions with a tinge of pride and bashfulness as nobody had ever been interested in winter as she had.

Kayla then said she wanted to sit down and Jack manipulated the snow covered ground, melting it so that Kayla would not be stuck frozen on the ground. He then sat back down next to her as she asked him questions about his winter season and he in turn asked about her life.

"Honest to goodness, I've never really drew much last time, I only did if I was upset or needed some time to think," Kayla answered Jack truthfully when he asked her how she had become interested in drawing. Kayla was surprised that throughout her whole conversation with Jack, there never seem to be an end to their topics. She found it nice.

The topic then turned to teenage infatuations as Jack had wondered aloud why some kids changed all the time. He wanted to know it firsthand from a teen herself so he could wrap his head around the pondering question as to why children suddenly change 360 degrees when they grow up.

Kayla had pondered on this question before replying. "They just simply grow up Jack. School replaces fantasies, boyfriends/girlfriends replaces true friendships and suddenly being popular is so important as if it was oxygen; it's silly and shallow but for the next 5 years, it's all that teen's will ever know," Kayla said as truthfully as she could. She thought her reasoning was flimsy but thankfully, the guardian just nodded, satisfied with her answer.

"Did you ever have a girlfriend?" Kayla asked impulsively and clapped her hands on her mouth as she realized what she just said.

Jack just did a double take when he glanced at her, as if he was really surprise by her question. "Uhm, nope, haven't had one even when I was human," Jack admitted truthfully. Kayla cocked her head to one side as she looked at him curiously. Jack just flushed.

"I kinda thought girls were gross back then because I wasn't really friends with many of them last time," Jack said, shrugging his shoulders.

Kayla laughed. "Wow, you must've been quite the lady's man," Kayla said with a hint of sarcasm. She giggled when she saw him blush.

"How about you? Ever had a boyfriend before?" Jack asked, turning the tables, his grin devilish as Kayla flushed.

"I've had one before, but it was just a minor thing, it didn't even last for a week," Kayla admitted truthfully as Jack's blue eyes widened. He was surprised at the flash of jealousy he felt at the mention of Kayla's boyfriend but he quickly shook it off, opting for a snicker instead.

"Aww, I guess that little Kay here isn't as innocent as we thought," Jack said in a teasing tone as Kayla poked him by his side and blush.

"Ugh, as if, don't tell me you never felt at least a liking for one girl before," Kayla said challengingly as Jack looked thoughtful.

"There was one before," Jack admitted. "But she never knew I liked her, of course when I was still human," Jack said simply and shrugged. Kayla nodded, her curiosity piqued. She felt something akin to jealousy but quickly pushed it down. She and Jack were friends. At least she thought they were?

She asked for the mystery girl's name but Jack just changed the subject and said that they should be going back home as night was fast approaching. Kayla nodded; feeling a little disappointed but just decided to let it go. Jack held out his hand for her to take and she grasped it. As soon as her hand touched his, she felt a spark and withdrew her hand hastily, surprised. Jack also looked surprised as he looked down at his hand.

Kayla just laughed nervously as Jack gave a crooked grin. He felt weirded out but decided to let it go, they had more pondering things to think about than a small physical spark.

Jack held out his arms for her to hop into and she wrapped her arms around his neck with ease.

"You two are so sweet, it makes me sick to the core," a malevolent voice spoke.

Jack's head whipped up as he looked at the shadows forming around them. He plopped Kayla to the ground, hid her behind his back as his grip on his staff tightened.

Out of the darkness, a hooded figure approached them, baring his teeth, flanked by a legion of shadows.

"Pitch," Jack said and uttered a swear word as Kayla cowered behind him, quaking like a leaf. "Don't show him fear, Kay," Jack whispered to her as he turned to face the Nightmare King.

"Pitch, it's been a long time," Jack said casually as if he was greeting an old friend. Pitch nodded a glint of hatred in his eyes.

"Yes, Jack Frost, it has been a long time," he said softly but threateningly as he circled the both of them.

"You didn't bother to tell me you had a girlfriend, Jack, it would've been lovely to meet her," Pitch said as he leered at Kayla and Jack's grip on her tightened even more until Kayla could swear that the arm he was holding already had a bruise.

"Kayla Montgomery, so it is, it's been a terribly long time since I've visited you child," Pitch grinned as Kayla shrunk back.

"So it was you, who did give me all those nightmares," Kayla said, revelation lighting up her eyes.

"Of course it was my dear, who else would be so creative into thinking of different ways to torment little children," Pitch said as he stalked nearer to her and Jack turned his body, shielding her. "But me," he uttered those words softly as the nightmares and shadows descended upon them.

Kayla screamed as her vision went dark and she felt a strong force flinging her, until she fell upon the cold ground. Kayla opened her eyes and found that she was feet away from the battle taking place. Jack was in the middle of the chaos, a mass of blue and white shooting out of his staff to freeze the nightmares. It looked like a tornado of darkness was descending upon Jack as he fought it of valiantly, his face molded into a snarl so frightening, it shocked Kayla.

"Run, Kayla! Get out of here!" he shouted as one of the fearlings ripped the hoodie on his back.

"No!" Kayla shouted a she scrambled to her feet.

"Just go!" Jack screamed at her before summoning a huge wind force to propel her into the meadows, where the trees would shelter her from the onslaught. She landed with a thud and was momentarily disorientated as she hid behind some bushes. She watched the showdown with huge fearful eyes.

The fearlings were a tenacious force but Jack fought with everything he had, freezing the fearlings and zipping around the remaining ones. He fought tooth and nail as the fearlings attacked back continuously, never stopping.

She screamed when one of them came behind him but Jack just turned around with the skill of a warrior and froze him. He then shot sharp icicles while rotating 360 degrees in the air, every icicle landing perfectly at the targets.

Kayla felt as if she couldn't breathe. Her heart was stuck in her throat as she watched her friend battle it out, varying cuts appearing on his pale skin from the onslaught of the nightmares.

She then heard something come up behind her and before she could even turn around, a cold hand grasped around her neck, lifting her up. She spluttered and tried prying the grey hands of her neck but it wouldn't budge as if it were made of steel.

The figure then led her to the center of the clearing as she coughed and kicked the air but couldn't fight purchase. Black spots were covering her vision before the figure dropped her unceremoniously onto the ground. She heaved oxygen in as she realized the figure was Pitch. Pitch stopped the fighting and the nightmares immediately backed off. Jack then stood there all alone, still in his battle stance.

Pitch smirked at him before picking Kayla up roughly by her arm. Jack noticed and gasped; fear filling him as he realized Pitch had Kayla.

The Nightmare King then caught a whiff of his fear, so potent and powerful that he grinned in delight. "Well, well, well, who knew that little Jack Frost would be so afraid for his human friend, you really must love her so much, Frost. Shame," Pitch said nonchalantly as he dug his sharp fingernails into Kayla's sweater and dragged it down, causing her sweater to tear and the teen to whimper.

Jack's eyes widened before they settled into a hostile stare. "What do you want from me, Pitch," the winter spirit asked, his face contorting into a snarl.

The dark spirit's face broke out into a grin before he spoke. "Simple, I want my revenge Frost; I want to destroy you and your pathetic group of guardians. I want to make each and every one of you suffer the same thing I've been going through for the past 22 years. Hell," Pitch said and his grin widened. Kayla tried to fight him of, but his grip was like steel.

"But seeing as a mortal girl is put into the picture, I want to… Shake things up a bit," Pitch said as he ran his hands through Kayla's hair.

"Don't you dare touch her," Jack growled, low and menacing.

"Or what Frost?" Pitch challenged him. "If you even move a single muscle in a threatening way, I will injure her so bad that she'll be beyond recognizable," Pitch said and true to his word, he knocked Kayla on her head hard and she passed out, falling to the ground. The fearlings then swarmed around her and Jack tensed.

"I'll ask you again, what do you want Pitch? You can have anything you want from me as long as you release her," Jack said, his shoulders slumping.

"I'll tell you what I want Jack, I want you to get your sorry butt out of this fight, you are to have no involvement in this battle whatsoever and if you so much as raise your staff, I will kill her with my own hands," Pitch said softly as he looked at the conflicted Spirit of Winter. "Shake my hand to confirm your deal," the evil spirit added, smiling malevolently.

Jack took a deep breath. "It's a deal, you won't see me fighting at all," Jack promised.

"Good," Pitch said as his grin grew impossibly wider. He walked over to the guardian and extended his hand. Jack grasped it forcefully and almost doubled up in intense pain. He felt as if his very life-force was seeping out of him and every part of his body ache and hurt.

Pitch let go of his hand with a satisfied smirk. "Because after I steal your powers, you won't have to fight anymore," the boogeyman said triumphantly.

Jack kneeled on the ground as the pain wracked every fiber of his being. "Pitch, you-you lied, fuck," Jack gasped as the pain ripped through his head.

"So I did," Pitch muttered and he walked over the wrecked Guardian of Fun. "Sweet dreams, Jack," Pitch muttered as he delivered a hard blow to Jack's head and Jack slumped to the ground, unconscious.

It seemed to be hours before Jack could finally wake up and he groaned as the moonlight bathed over his face, illuminating the meadow where he had been showing Kayla the snow flowers.

"Kayla" Jack gasped and quickly stood up, wincing against the dull ache in his body. He looked around and found that the meadow was empty. There were no signs of the fight that had just happened. Jack jumped into the air to fly but instead, landed butt down onto the ground. He groaned and tried again. A third try and a fourth try. By the 6th try he had given up and slump to the ground, until he remembered his staff.

He scrambled up and searched for it, finding it mercifully intact by the roots of a tree. Pitch must have thought that without his powers, Jack wouldn't need his staff so therefore, Pitch found no need to destroy it.

Jack smacked his forehead as he realized how stupid he was for letting Pitch trick him into stealing his powers and he had also kidnapped Kayla! Jack grunted in frustration at his weakened state before he noticed the Aurora Borealis illuminating the night sky. Jack gasped as he saw the distressed signal North was sending the guardians. But without his powers, Jack couldn't summon the wind to take him to the Workshop and most importantly, to save Kayla from Pitch.

Jack looked up to the full moon in exasperation at his situation. "Manny! Help me, I lost my powers," Jack pleaded to the ancient guardian. "Pitch is back and I need to save Kayla before it's too late, please help me," Jack said as his voice broke at the end. He felt so tired and weak, but he forced himself to look at the moon, where he knew Tsar Lunar could hear him.

The air around Jack suddenly felt different, as if someone had clapped a pillow around his head. There were no sounds, not even the occasional noise of wildlife. It was so quiet that Jack could even hear his own heart beating thunderously against his chest. Suddenly his staff was vibrating and a bright blue light seem to shine from within the staff, illuminating the guardian's face.

It floated in front of Jack as he gaped in shock. He then felt this crazy urge to hold his staff. Jack then gripped the staff in his hands and felt a surge of cold electric like force running itself up his veins, energizing his very being. He gasped as he felt his strength return to him and as soon as it started, the strange phenomena was over.

Jack looked at his staff with huge eyes before testing out his powers hesitantly. A blast of icicles shot out and Jack leaped into the air with glee. "Thanks, Manny!" Jack called out to the moon gratefully as he started his search for Kayla.

He grimaced as he thought how long Kayla had been in Pitch's clutches. _Don't worry Kay, I'm coming for you,_ Jack thought as he sped with lightning speed to search for his friend.

~WOC~

Kayla struggled against the nightmares. She tried very hard to wake herself up. It felt as if she'd been stuck in her nightmares for days. She fought as hard as she could and nearly cried when she succeeded as she surfaced from the dreaded dark, head pounding and limbs hurting. She opened her eyes and tried to adjust her eyes to the smothering darkness. Kayla then tried to wipe of the sweat that clung to her like a second skin but she discovered she couldn't move her arms or her legs for that matter. Panic struck her heart as she realized that she was bound and violently fought against the black restrains.

"Well, the little girl has finally reawaken, good to see you after so many years sweetheart," a voice said from the shadows. Then, the figure of the boogeyman was suddenly in front of her and Kayla flinched.

Pitch Black cut a tall and imposing figure, with his clawed hands and feral looking yellow eyes which were currently fixed on her smugly.

"12 years is a long time that I haven't held you and watched your nightmares, little one" Pitch crooned as he tucked a stray lock of brown hair behind Kayla's ear.

"What do you want from me?" Kayla asked surprise that her voice hasn't wavered.

Pitch just smirked as he walked away from her before turning around sharply and growling at her. He stalked to the bound Kayla and grasped her cheek hard in his hand that Kayla could feel a bruise welling.

"What do I want? What do I want?" Pitch asked, sounding delirious as his grip on her cheek tightened and Kayla fought back the sob that threatened to burst out.

"I want to hear your screams, I want to see you cry because of your nightmares, I want you to be scared of me," Pitch said in a way that sounded as if he was just ticking of items in his grocery list. "But no, you haven't, ever since that blasted Frost couldn't stay away from you, he brought happiness, care, _love,_" Pitch spat the word as if it was poison in his mouth. "You haven't had many nightmares since, but no dear, that's not what I brought you here for," he said as he released her cheek.

The boogeyman stalked away from her and patted one of his fearlings on the head. "No, I brought you here as bait, I don't really want you, I want your boyfriend, Jack Frost," Pitch said mildly and smiled at her. "Though I have to admit, the smell of your fear is so strong, it's almost enticing," Pitch said as he leered at the teen. Kayla shrunk back at the wall.

"But I don't want him just like that, I want him broken, I want him to see the extent of my powers on someone he cared about, I want to break his heart as much as every bone in his body," Pitch said as he stroke her head. Kayla flinched at his cold touch. It wasn't comforting cold like Jack's, it was a deathly chill.

"Now enough of me rambling, I bet your tired sweet girl, so I'll see you tomorrow," Pitch remarked as he walked out of the dungeon. Immediately the fearling that had followed him here reared its ugly head and stalked towards Kayla. The fearling could smell her fear and how potent it was that Kayla swore it smiled before attacking her and covering her world in a blinding darkness again, the onslaught of her nightmares so powerful that Kayla screamed.

Up in the air, not far from Pitch's new lair, Jack Frost was trying to find something, anything that would lead him to the Nightmare King's realm. The dusting of snow on the ground was untouched and Jack could find nothing out of the ordinary.

This frustrated the winter spirit to no end. He needed to safe Kayla quick. Jack then thought of the possibilities how Pitch could've brought Kayla to his lair. Jack thought that Pitch wouldn't be travelling via flight so it was possible that he could've cleaned up good before he left.

Jack then dropped to the ground as he searched for traces across the snow. Jack suddenly had an idea. He placed his open palm on the frozen ground and concentrated on Pitch's footsteps, the varying aura and temperature and impact he could've left on the ground. His palm glowed blue and he was struck with a vision of the Nightmare King, walking with his fearlings and dragging Kayla along with him, from the ground's point of view. Jack gasped as he opened his eyes and retracted his palm, astonished at his own show of power.

He grinned in a self victory smile as he followed the trail. The trail led to a mountain side where the crevices were imposing and the edges of the cliff's sharp. Jack then realized he might need some help later from the other guardians. He smiled as he thought of a brilliant way to connect with them and pass on his message.

Jack conjured up a snowball and whispered his S.O.S message into it, before rolling it conjuring up a wind to take the snowball to his friends. He threw the snowball at the direction of North's workshop, hoping with all hope that his plan would work as he watched the snowball whizz away.

Jack then used his newfound ability to discover where the entrance to Pitch's lair was. The snow then led him to an opening in a rocky terrain. He flew to it cautiously and peeked inside. There seemed to be an aura of depression and fear surrounding the area. Jack entered cautiously, his staff poised for attack anytime soon.

The walls all seemed to be hewed from rough rocks but everything else looked man-made. As if someone lived here.

A piercing scream then interrupted Jack's thoughts as he ran straight for the source. He knew that scream, it belonged to Kayla and she sounded like she was being tortured.

Jack ran down the maze like corridors and came to a stop in front of a big red door. It looked formidable and imposing. He opened it and was shock by what he saw. Nightmares were swirling around a figure that seemed to be shackled to the wall. Her sobs could be heard. Jack gasped as he quickly froze the fearlings and destroyed each and every one of them out of rage.

With the nightmares out of the way, he quickly flew up to see if Kayla was alright. What he saw made his stomach churn.

There were dark purple bruises under her eyes, a bruise welling on her cheek and her sweater was in ruins. But that wasn't what scared him the most. What scared him was the hollow look in her eyes which held only a glimmer of hope. She smiled a relief grin through her cracked lips.

"Jack," she rasped.

"It's okay, Kay, I'll get you out of here," Jack said as he undid the bindings that held her to the wall. Once it was done, she collapsed into Jack's waiting arms and the winter spirit felt a huge surge of relief flow through him as he gently floated to the ground, careful not to aggravate her wounds. Kayla looked up at him with tear filled eyes.

"It was horrible Jack," she whispered as Jack nodded, his heart constricting at her pitiful sight as he wipe her tears and dirt away from her face.

"I know Kay, I know, you're safe now, love," Jack said, realizing his words as he held her close and felt the relief that was so palpable in his heart that he lifted her face and kissed her deep and hard. She was surprised but responded, her lips synchronizing with his cold ones. The kiss then turned tender as Jack was careful not to touch the bruised part of her face.

When they pull apart, Kayla gave a little smile as she clung to him tighter. "What was that for?" she rasped out with a huge smile on her face. Jack just smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

"Ah, prince charming, so nice of you to join us," a menacing voice said as the boogeyman appeared from the shadows. "You broke our promise Jack, now the girl has got to go," Pitch said in a fake sad voice as he heaved a heavy sigh.

"Over my dead body," Jack snarled as he got up and released a typhoon of icicles towards the Nightmare King. Pitch avoided them all with ease as a snarl was etched on his face.

"Your powers… How'd you get them back?" Pitch hissed as fearlings rose from behind him to flank their master.

Jack gave a cocky grin. "Oh, you know, luck," Jack said the last part as he dove for Pitch, hurtling chunks of ice at him. The fearlings rose up and surrounded Jack but the winter spirit fought them of, delivering kicks and punches that made them all dissipate like dust. Pitch dodged to the right as Jack managed to break through the barriers of nightmares and lunged at him.

The Nightmare King growled as he shot black sand out of his hands in a shape of arrows. Jack was faster than him as he flew midair and deflected the black sand with a huge chunk of ice. Jack then used the shock of the attack to gain advantage over Pitch as he delivered a round house kick to the boogeyman's ribs. Pitch easily gained back his balance and his grip turned into talons.

Pitch gave a cry and used his black sand to swarm around Jack; the guardian stalked around the swirling black sand with caution (imagine being in a tornado but only it's made out of black sand) as suddenly, the boogeyman launched at him and punched him in the face. Jack doubled over before recovering and finding his staff but the Nightmare King was faster as he kicked Jack's staff away from him and delivered a harsh blow to Jack's face.

Jack fell down, shielding his face from Pitch's constant blows; without his staff he was under Pitch's mercy. The Nightmare King stalked toward Jack with a languid smile on his face, forming a huge arrow that would pierce through Jack like butter. The winter spirit didn't give up as he slid under Pitch's feet, tripping him and flew in midair, trying to find his staff.

Jack was momentarily distracted when he felt something pull down on his leg and Pitch grinned as he gain leverage above Jack and punched the winter spirit's stomach repeatedly. Jack had enough strength to push Pitch of him and with a pained grunt he fell to the ground and hobbled to the side.

"There's no where you can run now, Jack," Pitch said dangerously as he closed in on Jack. Jack readied himself as Pitch laughed at his pathetic attempt.

"Jack!" a voice outside the tornado shouted and Jack looked up as his staff came hurtling through the tornado. It was Kayla. Jack avoided the boogeyman's grasp as he flew midair and caught his staff. When his staff connected to Jack's hand, a bright blue light suddenly illuminated and covered the whole tornado. The swirling mass of black sand froze and exploded into tiny shards of ice as Jack and Pitch covered their eyes, momentarily distracted by the staff's show of power.

The tornado dissipated around them and Jack could see the ruins of the room and he noticed that Kayla was on the ground, hiding her face. Jack felt relief that she was okay before feeling a ripping pain in his shoulder.

He turned around and escaped Pitch's second blow with the sword as he felt warm blood seeping down his arm. He winced and used his other hand to raise his staff to create ice shields, protecting him from the deranged boogeyman's blows.

Pitch was snarling, his yellow eyes darkening and fangs bore at Jack. He looked like a mad dog about to strike as he knocked Jack to his feet, making Jack land on his already injured arm and raised the sword deliver the final death blow.

Just as Pitch was about to land a blow on Jack's head, a rope of golden sand captured his hand and drew the sword into the boogeyman's own face.

Jack literally shouted in relief when he saw the other guardians arriving into the room, all poised for a fight. Jack noted that they looked beaten and wondered what the emergency was at the Workshop.

North turned to him, seeming to have read Jack's mind. "We already defeated about 2 of them, but three are on their way, we couldn't shake them of in time to safe you," North explained in a rushed way as Sandy and Bunnymund were engaged in a epic fight with the Nightmare King.

Sandy had managed to subdue Pitch with his golden sand before Bunnymund knocked the boogeyman over with his boomerangs and explosive eggs.

"There, that'll keep that bastard under wraps," Bunnymund swore as Pitch slumped to the ground.

Jack looked confused. "Three of them? What…?" Jack trailed of as he felt the ground shaking. He heard Kayla scream and point outside the window. Funny, he didn't even know this place had windows, Jack thought momentarily as he looked in horror at the cause of the quake.

Outside, three huge shadow demons were making their way up the rocky terrain and back to their master's palace as one by one they trudged back up.

"They attacked your workshop?" Jack spluttered as he looked at North and the giant guardian nodded sadly.

They didn't have time to worry before the roof of the room was being torn open and the demon's hideous faces peeked in. A horrendous screech could be heard from them as the demons used their shadow powers to strike the guardians. All of them moved out of the way as Jack flew and crashed into Kayla, shielding her with his body. When the dust died down, the guardians all couldn't be seen as they were hiding behind various different boulders found in the room. This confused the monsters to no end.

North, Jack and Kayla were hidden together behind a boulder when Jack whispered his rushed plan to North. North looked shocked but nonetheless agreed. North then moved from his spot behind the boulders as he waved up and down with his swords, demanding the demon's attention.

They let out a roar at finding their prey and just as they opened their mouths, Jack Frost flew up from his spot behind the boulder and flew head first into the demons mouth. The demon paused, looking confused as the others were firing black sand blows to the rest of them.

"Jack!" Kayla screamed as Tooth zipped out and restrained her, pushing the girl behind another boulder before telling her to stay there. Kayla was the weak link here and if anything happened, it would likely hurt her first.

Toothiana gave a battle cry before flying through the demons hand, slicing his whole hand of with her wings. The demon shrieked in pain before the giant hand fell to the ground in a show of black sand.

The rest of the demons were then distracted by one of them who was moaning and groaning in pain. A blue light seem to shine and grow through the attacked black sand demon; he gave a low cry before exploding in a icicles and a very daze Jack Frost stood hovered in midair, black sand staining his white hair grey.

The other demons gave a loud cry and attacked the guardians with newfound zest for revenge for their fellow demon.

"Good job mate!" Bunnymund shouted as he took advantage of the demon's shock and e threw a rather large explosive egg into the demon's middle. The demon gave a low growl and dissipated. Meanwhile, Sandy and Tooth were busy deflecting the attacks of the last black sand demon and Tooth was using every chance she could get to mutilate the demon's huge mass. She managed to cut through the demon's leg and the huge mass of black sand groaned, trying to balance itself.

"Now, Sandy! Bunny!" Tooth yelled as the sandman used his sand ropes to hinder the demon of its feet and Bunny threw a few huge exploding eggs and the demon exploded into oblivion once and for all.

The guardians stood in the middle of the whole chaos with triumphant smiles on their faces.

"You think you have won, but think again, guardians, I'm going to murder one of your believers right here," Pitch said threateningly as the guardians turned around and found him holding a knife made out of black sand to Kayla's throat.

"I tried fighting him of," Kayla said weakly as Tooth tried to give her a comforting smile.

Bunny looked at Sandy and nodded. The golden man grimaced.

"Pitch, haven't you had enough of tormenting that young girl, you monster," North growled and flashed his huge double edge swords.

Jack just narrowed his eyes and looked to Kayla in desperation.

"Oh, I'm not done tormenting her yet, she needs one more touch before she's finally broken," Pitch said as he threw Kayla to the ground.

"Girl," Pitch said in a harsh tone. "Do you want to know the truth of your parents death?" the Nightmare King asked as he looked at the confuse teen who was trying to pick herself of the ground.

The guardians all tensed, especially Jack as they knew where Pitch was going with this. Kayla slowly shook her head. "They died in a car accident," she said softly as she looked at Jack, confusion and panic clearly etched on her face.

"Ah, but do you know the real cause of their death?" Pitch said as he smirked at her. The teen's eyes looked guarded as she shook her head.

Pitch's smirk grew immensely smugger as he pointed his knife in Jack's direction. "He's the cause of it all," Pitch muttered as he faked a look of sadness in his face and tone. "He killed your parent's on that very night," Pitch said as he crouched to look Kayla in the eye.

"Yo-You're lying," Kayla gasped out as she looked from Jack to Pitch. "Tell me he's lying," she pleaded to Jack. The winter spirit couldn't look her in the eyes as he slowly but surely shook his head, regret and shame written all over his face. _No_.

Kayla gave an almost inaudible gasp, her eyes flashing with betrayal. Jack dared to look at her and found her brown eyes stormy and hostile. "How could you, Jack?" Kayla asked weary and angry at the same time.

"It was an accident…" Jack explained weakly as Kayla attempted to stand up and she looked Pitch in the eye, wincing at her injuries.

"You're a fucking monster," she spat out as Pitch merely smiled. She then looked at Jack. "You're not so far behind him yourself," Kayla said venomously as Jack's eyes widened.

"Now, Sandy!" Bunnymund yelled as the little golden man extended his sand ropes and grasped the Nightmare King in them. Bunnymund used one of his explosive eggs to knock Pitch out and Sandy used the leverage he had to fly out of the lair.

The guardians all watched with rapt attention as they saw Sandy flew out through the torn roof and with the extension of his sand ropes; he rotated 360 degrees, gaining momentum as he flew higher, and higher. Soon, all that could be seen was a blur of golden as Sandy screeched to a stop and he released the figure of Pitch Black. The Nightmare King went flying up, high into the sky and they saw his body disappear.

Sandy looked down to see that he was almost out of the stratosphere, near to outer space. He then gravitated back down, as the guardians all pat him in the back.

"Where did Pitch go?" Tooth asked Sandy, her eyes shining with excitement.

In answer to her question, the Sandman just made an image of the moon above his head and proceeded with a figure of Tsar Lunar.

"You send him to the moon, that's brilliant," Tooth gasped as she looked at North.

Sandy just shrugged and gestured to Bunnymund as if to say it was also the Pooka's idea. They all then looked to the moon as one and saw that part of the moon was smudged in black and ever since that day, mankind will know it as the dark side of the moon.

"C'mon, it's time to get you kids, home," North said jovially as he looked at a stony Kayla and nervous Jack.

Sandy then floated up to Kayla and without another word, he sprinkled dream sand onto her eyes and she fell into a deep slumber.

"Her injuries would be too painful for her to handle conscious," Bunnymund explain as he picked up Kayla up bridal style and walked towards North's sleigh, hovering outside.

They all got into the sleigh, happy to be in such a short distance from the Workshop.

"We'll get the yetis to tend to you and her in the infirmary," North whispered to Jack who sat quietly beside him, stone still to avoid aggravating his bruised skin.

"Do you think she hates me?" Jack asked sadness and regret coloring his tone.

North sighed. "She had to know the truth sooner or later. But my boy, why didn't you tell her about this before?" the giant guardian asked, looking at his winter friend.

"I was selfish, I… I didn't want to lose her," Jack finished that last part softly, almost inaudibly but North understood and nodded.

They got back to the Workshop and North immediately whisked Jack to the infirmary to treat the wounds and bruises he suffered from the fight with Pitch. The last thing Jack remembered before Sandy sprinkled sleep sand in his eyes was the rest of the guardian's look of compassion and Bunnymund setting Kayla on a bed opposite the hospital. Sandy then sprinkled dream sand into his eyes and Jack found himself falling headlong into unconsciousness.

Jack woke up and felt well rested but stiff from the lack of movement. He found that he wasn't wearing his hoodie but instead the white shirt in which he slept in. There were bandages plastered on Jack's body and he moved cautiously.

He got up and made his way to Kayla's bed at the opposite of the infirmary. He noticed that she was wearing a white hospital gown and there were tubes stuck to her hands with an IV drip behind. She was groaning softly, restless because of the pain and dreams she was having. Jack sat on the hospital chair next to her as he brushed the hair out of her face, avoiding the plastered area of her bruised face.

At his touch she seemed to calm down a little and Jack was transported back to the time when he did the exact same thing, 12 years ago at a Burgess hospital, when Kayla was awaiting her parents who never came back.

Jack's heart constricted with regret as he caressed her face. "I'm sorry I let this happen to you, Kay," Jack whispered, remorsefully.

Kayla didn't answer him back, finally settling down from her dream and falling back into a deep sleep. Jack then gently held her hand as he felt the waves of tiredness crash back upon him as he laid his head by her side and fell back asleep.

Kayla awoke a few hours later, grimacing as she sat herself up but couldn't. She then realized that Jack was holding her hand, fast asleep with his head just resting on her bed. Despite the anger she felt towards Jack when Pitch told her the truth she couldn't help but running her fingers through his white hair, relishing how soft yet cold it was.

She knew that she couldn't stay mad at Jack forever but Kayla still felt the sting and she needed to know the real truth.

Fortunately, she felt Jack stirring from his sleep, awoken by her touch. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes before glancing at her. Immediately a look of shame graced his face as he sat back on the chair and looked at her impassive face.

"Hey, Kay," he said softly and when she didn't reply, Jack sighed. "Look, I have to tell you the truth," Jack said as he looked at her with sad eyes.

"About time," Kayla whispered sarcastically as she rasped through her sore throat.

Jack grimaced but didn't falter at her tone. "Look, could you please just sweep all judgments aside and listen to me," Jack pleaded and after a moment, Kayla slowly nodded, frowning.

"Okay, it was 12 years ago, on Christmas Eve when the rest of the guardians blamed me for causing a blizzard which complicated Santa's gift sending," Jack sucked in a deep breath before continuing. "I got mad so I flew back to Burgess and took my anger out by freezing the streets and everything around it," when he said those words, Kayla shot him a look but Jack just ignored it and continued.

"It was around midnight and honest to goodness, I didn't know that there were any cars on the road. I was just about to undo the frost when I heard a car speeding down the main road, and before I could do anything, it skidded on the ice I created and smashed into a tree," Jack said as he recalled that fateful night, remembering the sound of the car colliding into a tree.

"That's when I found you. I followed you all the way to the hospital and was there to when your grandma came and took you home. I made a guardian promise that no matter what, I would stay with for as how long as you like and be whatever you wanted me to be, a brother, a friend, anything," Jack said softly as Kayla's eyes welled up in tears which she wiped it of furiously before they could fall.

"That's why I never left you, even when you stopped believing in me, I was always there," Jack said.

"So, you were always there?" Kayla asked, momentarily shock as Jack nodded. "Did you really cause that blizzard?" Kayla inquired curiously.

"Nope, it happened when I wasn't even there," Jack said as he and Kayla shared a look.

"Pitch," they both whispered with semi horrified looks.

"He's gone now so he can't hurt you anymore, Kay, that's for sure," Jack reassured her as Kayla nodded, relief coursing through her at his words.

They were both silent for a while before Jack had the nerve to look at her. He gently held her hand, giving her ample space to pull it back if she didn't want to touch him. He'd understand. But, no, she didn't pull away nor did she grasp his hand.

"Kay, I am so sorry for everything that happened all those years ago, I would understand if you hated me and never want me around ever again," Jack said as he traced circles on her hands, his eyes averting to the white sheet of the hospital bed. It was silent once more as Jack could literally hear the cog works in Kayla's brain.

Suddenly, she tilted his chin up so that he would look at her. Kayla noted that his eyes were weary, guarded and apprehensive all at the same time. Kayla surprised herself and Jack when she impulsively leaned down and touched her lips to his. Jack responded a nanosecond later, kissing her back and cradling her face in his hands. They pulled back, and Kayla smiled at him for the very first time that day.

She cleared her throat. "Jack, after everything that happened, how you risked everything to save me and protect me all those years," Kayla trailed of and Jack felt himself hoping. "I forgive you, but on one condition," she made her tone a mock strict one as Jack nodded, all too happy with her forgiveness to even care about her conditions.

"Go ahead, Kay, I'm all ears," Jack said as he smiled at her to continue.

"Before I request this, I want to know something… What are we, Jack?" Kayla asked, confused as Jack looked at her first in confusion and then recognition as he realized what she was trying to say.

"I mean, we hold hands, we kiss and care about each other to the point of when it's more than friends, but I need to know, what are we?" Kayla asked softly, now afraid of facing rejection herself.

Jack straightened up, his grip on her hand never slackened. "Kay, you know I care about you, right?" he asked as Kayla nodded, looking down at her fingers.

"Sometimes, I care for you so much to the extent that it scares me and sometimes I think, I…" he faltered as Kayla dared a peek at him. "I… I love you," Jack whispered that part out as Kayla's face brightened like the sunrise on a clear morning.

"I love you too, Jack" Kayla whispered. "So, I wanted to ask… You said you would be anything I wanted you to be, right?" Kayla asked as Jack nodded.

"Well, I… I want you to be… Mine," Kayla said as she smiled at him. Jack grinned.

"Of course Kay, and I want you to be mine too," he said as he hugged her. Kayla laughed and returned the hug back, enthusiastically.

Jack broke away and grinned down at her before leaning in to capture her lips with his again. Kayla was all too happy to deepen the kiss as she smiled through it. His hands wound across her waist as she threaded her fingers through his white hair. The two of them broke apart, smiling like buffoons as Kayla felt warmth spread across her cheeks.

A loud cough made them break apart further and blush as they found the rest of the guardians standing by the hallway of the infirmary.

Bunny was smirking, Tooth had tears in her eyes while Sandy and North were grinning.

"I was about to come in and give the little ankle biter some pain meds but I can see you done away with it better than any meds could, eh, Frosty?" Bunny said as he winked at the both of them.

Jack rolled his eyes and Kayla laughed as the rest of the guardians joined in.

"C'mon now, we have to fix you both and then, it's time for Kayla to go back home," North said as the teen pouted.

"Aww, man! Can't I stay here for a _little_ while longer?" Kayla asked as she looked pleadingly at North.

North thought about this before he nodded and Kayla whooped with happiness. She loved Santa's Workshop to say goodbye to it so soon.

She looked over at Jack who was also grinning and they shared a look before Jack leaned in to whisper conspiratorially.

"What's say you and I snow ball attack Bunny when he's coming out from his hole?" Jack said as the rest of the guardians looked on in curiosity.

"Deal," Kayla said and a huge smile spread across her face before she accepted her meds from Bunny, who was giving them both glares. A look that said, _both of you better not be attempting something fishy_ as Jack and Kayla just laughed and settled against each other.

* * *

_Ta-da! How'd that go for a drama/action/romance chapter? I hope I did well. Let me know in the review section *hint hint*_

_Though I kinda feel sorry for Pitch in the books, I wanted to make him more cruel and sadistic so it fits the theme of his long time revenge, etc etc._

_Oh and snow flowers are real. Just go and search for the 'Wonders of the Arctic'. Their super pretty._

_Once again, thank you guys for the lovely reviews. It's pretty simple actually, the more reviews I get, the more I write. So if you love this story, hate it, ship it, etc, review, review, REVIEW! xoxo teeceecee. _


	11. Chapter 11

Okay, first of all, this isn't another chapter (sorry, will try and update soon) but a little something I just wanted to say.

This isn't an Author's Note mind you, it's a thank you note.

So... I was thinking, if the world did end tomorrow (which I doubt it would, lol), I would just like to say a major thank you to those who have supported my story.

As you all know, this is my first ever story and this idea happened when I was just about to drift to sleep and was wondering what would happen if Jack accidently caused an accident because of his frost and that is how this story came out.

And I would just like to say, thanks guys for the motivation and support you all gave me. I may not have a legion of readers, but I have a few that never fail to give me awesome feedback and I'm thankful for that.

So, whoever you are; thank you :D

The real chapter 11 will come up soon once I'm done with Christmas preparations and caroling. Merry Christmas everyone!

P.S: Was feeling a little sentimental today and had a strange urge to thank everyone for stuff they did for me. My mum even checked my forehead to see if I was alright this morning, haha.


	12. The Real Chapter 11

**Okay, Chapter 11. This chapter is more to all of them reeling from the aftermath of Pitch's attack. Oh, and there's gonna be a serious heart to heart girl talk some where! Enjoy this chapter and leave a comment! As usual, thanks for the lovely reviews everyone! Some of them are so touching I tear up sometimes #truestory. And I think that for the next chapter, I might have to change the rating to M...**

**Also, review guys! I love hearing your feedback! Please and thank you!**

* * *

Where we last stop:

_She looked over at Jack who was also grinning and they shared a look before Jack leaned in to whisper conspiratorially._

_"What's say you and I snow ball attack Bunny when he's coming out from his hole?" Jack said as the rest of the guardians looked on in curiosity._

_"Deal," Kayla said and a huge smile spread across her face before she accepted her meds from Bunny, who was giving them both glares. A look that said, both of you better not be attempting something fishy as Jack and Kayla just laughed and settled against each other._

For the next few days, Kayla and Jack healed in the comfort of North's Workshop. It was under repair from the destruction the shadow demons caused but nonetheless, it was still safe for staying in. North had deemed Jack not well enough to bring snow because of the sword blow he sustained on his shoulder during a fight with the boogeyman.

Kayla, on the other hand, loved the hustle and bustle of Santa's workshop as it was getting near to Christmas. She would often visit the yetis when they were preparing the toys and just watched, fascinated. Other times, she could just observe as the other yetis rebuild the destroyed parts of the workshop, though she would get bored after a while.

Other times, she would just hang out with Jack or play with the elves, who had taken a fond liking to her. She knew Jack was grumpy and impatient to start snow days, so she decided to help him out.

It was during her stay in the infirmary that Tooth visited her and when they had a serious girl to girl talk. Kayla could still remember it as if it were yesterday. Wait, it was yesterday.

Kayla was resting on her bed, playing with one of the elves who happened to visit her and bring her favorite fruit cake. Jack was nowhere to be seen as he was having a 'serious talk' with North. Kayla was laughing at the little elves antics when the infirmary door opened softly and the tooth fairy came fluttering in.

"Hi, Kayla," Tooth greeted her as she sat beside the still bedridden girl.

"Hey, Tooth, what's up?" Kayla asked with a grin. She noted that Tooth looked a little nervous.

"Nothing, it's…" Tooth trailed of, her pink irises filled with hesitation as she twisted her fingers. "Iwanttoknowyou'llneverhurtJackagain," Tooth said in one breath as Kayla gave her a look of confusion. Even the elf stood still and eyed the tooth fairy with confusion before Kayla gestured at him to leave her and the tooth fairy alone.

"It's okay Jangle, I won't be long," Kayla reassured the little elf who scurried away. Kayla then turned back to Tooth with the same confused look.

"Do you mind slowing it down a little, Tooth," Kayla asked jokingly as the tooth fairy took a deep breath.

The Guardian of Memories then set her face before replying. "I want to know that you'll never hurt Jack again," Tooth said, more forcefully this time, as her feathers ruffled.

Kayla's eyes grew weary as she eyed the fairy. "I won't anymore, Tooth, trust me, I hate myself as much as you hate me for doing that to Jack," Kayla said, regret coloring her tone as her brown eyes cast downward.

Tooth's whole exterior then changed as she realized she had hurt the girl. She visibly softened her demeanor and tone. "It's not that Kayla, it's just that, I don't want to see Jack hurt again, like 12 years ago," Toothiana said compassionately as she gave Kayla a small smile.

"Was it that bad?" Kayla asked softly.

The tooth fairy was silent for a while before replying. "Yes, it was, he was so depressed and mostly moody before North shook him out of it," Tooth said as she recalled North's desperate explanation to Jack that night, 12 years ago.

"We even nearly changed his title to Guardian of Grouchiness," Tooth said in a humorless way as Kayla gave a small chuckle.

"I would never, ever let anything like that happen again, Tooth," Kayla promised in a strong voice, recalling that fateful night when she told Jack she didn't want to believe in him anymore.

Tooth sighed. "We don't blame you honestly Kay, because you were such a little girl back then," Tooth said as pink eyes met brown. Kayla nodded. "But poor Jack was so sad that time that he felt depressed when we would indirectly visit you, even when you lost your first tooth and I went to visit, he kept on asking me questions like how did you look now with a front tooth missing, were you in pain, blah blah," Tooth said as she shrugged her shoulders.

Kayla's eyes widened as she was strucked by Tooth's words. Jack had never left her, even when he could, he didn't.

"He cares a lot about you, Kay," Toothiana said as she offered the teen a small smile.

"I must have made you guys sad too," Kayla said in a soft voice as she fiddled with the white blanket draped over her.

"I do admit, we were all sad but that naturally happens when one of us is sad too. Jack is family and we all care about him as much as he cares about you," Tooth said and when she caught a look from Kayla, the Tooth fairy continued. "I love him like a sister or a mother would Kayla, since he never had any of those for the past 300 years," Tooth explained, taking Kayla's hand in an offer of comfort and understanding.

Kayla nodded as she squeezed Tooth's hand. "Thanks for telling me, Tooth, I now understand things better," Kayla said as she smiled at Toothiana.

The tooth fairy gave Kayla's hand one last squeeze as she quickly fluttered out of the infirmary, closing the doors softly at her wake. Kayla let her head thud back onto the pillow as she let the guilt overwhelm her. She knew she would have to make it up to Jack, some way or another, but right now, she just wanted to rest.

"Hey, Jack, you wanna go out and have a snowball fight?" Kayla asked, in a mischievous tone when she opened his room door the next morning, unannounced. She laughed when Jack fell down from his bed in obvious shock.

Jack sighed. "I don't feel like it, Kay, my arms still injured," the winter spirit whined as he rolled his eyes.

Kayla let herself into his room and went up to Jack who looked miserable. She looked up at him with earnest brown eyes.

"You wanna hear a joke?" Kayla asked festively, happiness glinting in her brown eyes.

Jack nodded, subdued but curious.

Kayla pondered for a moment before starting. "So, this guy walks into the doctor's office and asks if he had anything for wind…The doctor gave him a kite, badumtss" Kayla said, mimicking the effect of a drum as Jack chuckled.

"Good one," the winter spirit said. "But I still don't feel like it," Jack said as he folded his arms in mock stubbornness.

"C'mon Jack, it's my last day here anyway, and you've never had a snowball fight with me," Kayla said and pouted.

Jack perked up. "It's your last day here already?" he asked, incredulous.

"Yup, North said it was okay for me to go back already, cause the wounds aren't that serious anymore," Kayla said nonchalantly as she shrugged. Jack couldn't believe it, he had been moping around so much that he forgot she needed to get back home to.

His face broke out into a grin. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go!" Jack said enthusiastically as he dragged a laughing Kayla along with him.

They spent the whole morning, running around like little kids, throwing snowballs outside of North's workshop. As predicted, Kayla got hit the most by Jack's snowballs but she did throw some mean ones of her own.

"Hey, where did you learn to make a snowball that well?" Jack asked her, happiness alighting his eyes as he floated in front of her.

Kayla smiled coyly. "Practice," she shrugged and threw a snowball she had hidden behind her into the winter spirit's shock face.

Jack shook of the excess snow, grinning while chasing after her. "I'm so gonna get you for that," he yelled and managed to tackle her from behind. They both halted to a stop, breathless from laughing. Kayla was suddenly hyper aware that Jack's arms were still around her. Jack too noticed as he turned her around to kiss her nose before letting her go.

Her face was rosy from the snowball fight, her hair sopping wet. Kayla then let out a small sneeze and warmth filled Jack's heart as he found that to be so adorable.

"C'mon Kay, it's time to get you inside to dry you up," Jack said as he dragged a pouting Kayla along with him.

They got in to North's workshop and sat by the huge fireplace, Kayla wrapped up in a towel a kind yeti had given her upon seeing her sodden state.

She was shivering slightly and Jack moved away from her, not wanting to chill her out anymore, but she just rolled her eyes and snuggled next to him, content etched on her features. Jack put an arm around her as he laid his head on hers.

"Thanks for today Jack," she said.

Jack chuckled. "Anytime Kay," he replied.

"I got a question," she asked, hesitantly.

"Hmm?"

"Were you ever there when I was playing with other kids, during a snow day?" Kayla asked as she stared at the flickering flames.

Jack thought about that before answering. "I was there, all the time, but you couldn't see me, remember?" Jack said, almost nonchalantly as he felt Kayla tense up.

"Right, I remember," she whispered and he could feel the remorse in her voice even though she hid it well.

"Hey, none of that, okay? It's all in the past," he said as he tickled her sides.

Kayla laughed as she tried to wriggle away from his cold hands.

"Uncle! Uncle! I'm ticklish," she wheezed out as Jack laughed and ceased his tickling.

"Ah, so you both were here the whole time," a voice said from behind them. Jack and Kayla turned simultaneously to find North standing there with small smile on his face. "It's time to get you back Kayla, the snow globe is ready," he said as he gestured for the both of them to follow him.

Kayla looked sad but she did as she was told. Jack followed her and North to the Globe room. There in the Globe room were the other guardians who were ready to bid their new human friend goodbye.

Tooth was the first one to hug her. "Goodbye, Kay, and thank you for everything," she whispered into the teens ear. Kayla just gave the tooth fairy a confused look. Tooth just smiled. "I meant for making Jack happy, you have no idea how glad it makes us to see him this happy," Toothiana said in a low voice as Kayla smiled brightly and thanked Tooth too.

The tooth fairy let her go as Bunnymund came up to bid his goodbye to Kayla.

"Bye, Bunny, I hope I get to see you real soon," Kayla said, with a big smile as the Easter bunny laughed and hugged her.

"You too, you little ankle biter," Bunny said as he let go of Kayla and mock punch her arm.

Sandy then came up next in a flurry of sand as he shook Kayla's hand enthusiastically.

Kayla giggled. "Bye to you too soon Sandy," Kayla said as she was fighting back the emotion she felt.

She then turned to North. "Thanks for having me stay here and keep me safe," she said to the big guardian as he laughed his belly laugh and pulled her into a massive hug.

"Of course Kayla, see you on Christmas day," he said in his gruff Russian accent. "And thank you for still believing," he said in a voice full of emotion as Kayla felt a lump form in her throat. _It's getting so hard to say goodbye to them, _she thought.

Last but not least, she looked at Jack with something along the lines of panic in her eyes, but Jack just rolled his eyes as he took hold of her hand, smiling. This confused Kayla, she thought she would have to say goodbye to him too.

"I'm taking you back home," Jack explained ad Kayla let out a breath of relief which prompted the guardians to chuckle.

Jack took the snow globe from her hand before tossing it to the ground. The same colorful vortex appeared and Jack took hold of Kayla's hand.

"Thanks guys, for everything," Kayla said as she waved to the other guardians. They waved back. Bunny looking sad, Tooth had a few tears in her eyes as Sandy and North smiled a bittersweet smile at her.

Jack's grip on her hand tightened as he and Kayla stepped through the magic portal, Kayla giving one last wave.

Colorful shapes then took over the sight of the guardians as Kayla and Jack flew headlong into the portal, hands held together the hold time.

"I'm sure gonna miss them," Kayla said as Jack just sympathetically rubbed her shoulder.

"You'll see them soon, Kay, don't worry. We guardians always make time for our favorite believers, and so far, they adore you, Kay," Jack said comfortingly as Kayla's eyes lit up. She then frowned as her feet found purchase on the cold pavement. She was back in the alley where they came from.

"Will you visit me too?" Kayla asked her brown eyes troubled. Jack was about to retort something sarcastic when he saw the fear in her eyes.

"Hey, hey," Jack said soothingly as he wrapped his arms around her and Kayla relished his cold embrace. "I promised you, I would never leave unless you wanted me to, Kay," Jack said, his voice muffled in her hair. Kayla nodded as Jack relaxed and smiled a tender smile when he looked at her.

"Let's get you home then," Jack said as he led Kayla to her car. Jack then took off into the air as Kayla drove back home with her car that she left in the alley.

Kayla noted that it was near evening as she quickly sped up.

She reached home in record timing. Kayla then opened the front door quietly to avoid seeing her grandma so that she could just sleep in.

"Kayla, you're back so soon," Mrs. Montgomery said and Kayla had to bite her tongue to keep the shriek of shock in.

"Hey, Nana, I'm just gonna go back upstairs and rest, taking care of sick people isn't as easy as you would think," Kayla said, fudging things up. "I don't know how you do it, Nana," Kayla replied in a sweet tone as Mrs. Montgomery nodded in understanding.

Kayla let out a breath she'd been holding when her grandmother said that she could go back upstairs and rest. She quickly raced back to her room and plopped down on her bed, resting her suddenly tired body.

A cold draft could suddenly be felt in her room and Kayla opened her eyes to see Jack coming through her window. The winter spirit smiled at her before sitting down next to her. Kayla turned to look at him, a small smile on her face.

"So, what now?" the both of them asked at the same time and they both burst out laughing.

"I don't know Jack, it feels like I've been on this whirlwind adventure and now I've gotta go back to reality again," Kayla said and made a face. Jack also made a face as he agreed.

"Something tells me, I'm going to be seeing more of you guys," Kayla admitted, her tone serious as she ran a hand through her long brown hair.

"I have that feeling too," Jack said as he lay down next to her and faced her. All was quiet as they lay pondering and Jack could see that Kayla was fighting back the sleepiness in her eyes.

"Go to sleep Kay, I'll come back tomorrow morning, I've got some snow to give out," Jack said as he got up and kissed her forehead. Kayla just nodded in reply as she closed her eyes and before Jack could leave her room through the window, she was already fast asleep.

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**So, I won't update until after Christmas as there's so much stuff to do (like I have to go to a church play at 7 and I just finished this part at 6.15 LOL) but there is gonna be a one anyways after the holidays.**

**Oh, and I got a Jack Frost figurine as an early Christmas gift! I can die happy now, he's so hot! **

**To all readers; Merry Christmas! And for all you frostlings, you could always ask North for Jack on Christmas *grins evilly***

**Merry Christmas again, y'all! **

**Once again, thank you guys for the lovely reviews. It's pretty simple actually, the more reviews I get, the more I write. So if you love this story, hate it, ship it, etc, please review! Thank you! xoxo teeceecee.**


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12. I can safely say that this chapter has officially changed the story's rating (or maybe not? Depending on your view). Don't judge please, this is my first time writing an... Obscure lemon *giggles***

** As usual, thanks for the lovely reviews everyone! I love hearing from all of you! **

**Hope you enjoy it and review to let me know what you think! Please and thank you! **

**Warning: This chapter contains detailed erotic scenes otherwise known as a lemon.**

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**Chapter 12.**

Where we last stop:

_"Something tells me, I'm going to be seeing more of you guys," Kayla admitted, her tone serious as she ran a hand through her long brown hair._

_"I have that feeling too," Jack said as he lay down next to her and faced her. All was quiet as they lay pondering and Jack could see that Kayla was fighting back the sleepiness in her eyes._

_"Go to sleep Kay, I'll come back tomorrow morning, I've got some snow to give out," Jack said as he got up and kissed her forehead. Kayla just nodded in reply as she closed her eyes and before Jack could leave her room through the window, she was already fast asleep._

~WOC~

Everybody thought of the moon as just another small planet, made up of rocks and gas. But little did anybody know that the moon just so happened to be the oldest guardian around, and currently, he was watching his newest guardian (well, one can't exactly call 22 years to be new) spreading snow in the sleeping town of Canada.

MiM smiled at Jack Frost. The kid had a soft place in his heart. Manny twinkled as he looked down at the winter spirit. _I have amazing plans for you, Jack Frost._

~WOC~

A week had passed since Kayla's visit to the North Pole. She had missed it immensely and couldn't wait to see the rest of the guardians again. As usual, the last week of school before the Christmas holiday was hectic and Kayla had to prepare a lot of things for the Christmas holiday.

Kayla was wondering what time would Jack be coming to visit her as it was already evening time. She then decided to clean up her spring clean… Er, winter clean her room for Christmas, Kayla thought as she chuckled. The thought of Jack visiting her was enough to get Kayla excited and a blush began to creep on her cheeks.

Their relationship had started of a bit rocky as neither were unsure of what to do. _I mean, like as if I could just call up Madison and tell her I have a boy problem but he isn't technically a boy, he's 322 years old, _Kayla though with a mental snort as she recalled one of their relationship bumps.

It was during a school day, a few days after they just got back from defeating Pitch. Kayla had just finished school and she was about to walk back home when she heard someone calling her name. She turned around and found Madison's brother, running up to her, telling her to wait.

"Jeez, Kay you walk fast," Andrew said and huffed as he neared her, pushing a tuft of fallen blonde hair out of his eyes. Kayla laughed as she took in his flustered state. His blonde hair was ruffled by the cold wind, his cheeks were flushed and his clothes were windswept on his tall figure.

Andrew was Madison's older brother who happened to be a senior. They were both very good friends and he thought of her as a sister, though Kayla did have a crush on him when she was younger. Kayla face heated up and that had nothing to do with the cold wind biting her cheeks.

It was easy to see why she had a crush on Andrew. Popular, good looking, tall, smart, he had everything going for him. But he was also a funny and down to earth guy, always saying hi to her if he happened to pass her by the hallways.

Kayla grinned as she greeted him. "So, what's up that you had to chase me halfway across the earth for?" Kayla asked, playfully as he laughed at her sarcastic question.

"I was just gonna pass Madison's message to you; she said call her if you have the time, she's mad you went MIA on her this pass few days" Andrew said as he rolled his eyes. Kayla nodded, feeling slightly guilty at abandoning her best friend just like that.

"Alright, dude, thanks," Kayla said and he grinned at her.

"No prob," he replied. "Oh, and Kay, Merry Christmas," he wished and pulled her in for a hug. Kayla embraced him back, feeling a little shy as he let go of her and smiled before turning around to leave. Before he had even taken a few steps, a snow ball hit the back of his head.

Andrew turned around, shocked. "Jeez, Kay, you could have just said 'you too' you know?" Andrew said, trying to make alight of this situation. Kayla shook her head, biting her cheeks to keep the giggle in.

"It wasn't me," she replied as another snowball hit Andrew, this time behind him. Andrew looked weirded out as he turned with a tentative smile before running back in the other direction.

Kayla looked mystified as she turned and heard laughing from the trees. She rolled her eyes as if she already knew who did that. And she did.

"Jackson Overland Frost," Kayla said between gritted teeth, sounding like a mother who was about to scold the crap out of her misbehaving child.

Jack's head then popped out from one of the tree branches as he grinned at her. "You can thank me, anytime," Jack said as he floated in front of her and gave a bow.

Kayla just glared at him. "That's not funny Jack," she said bluntly.

Jack's mischievous demeanor had gone and was replaced by a hurt which he tried to cover up with a cocky smile.

"I was just doing you a favor, you seemed like you didn't want him to put his hands around you, and he did," Jack said, with a hint of anger in his voice.

Kayla sighed. "He was just wishing me a merry Christmas and he's my best friend's brother okay? He treats me like a sister," Kayla said as she glared at him.

"He sure doesn't hug you like one," Jack retorted back, anger and indignation in his cyan eyes.

Kayla sighed and walked up to him, so that they were face to face where Jack had to look down and she had to slightly crane her neck up. "He is just like my brother okay, we have nothing between us, capiche?" she said, slightly frustrated and Jack furrowed his eyebrows and he sighed before flying of, mumbling.

Kayla just stood there, feeling hurt as she hugged her body and trudged back home.

Of course, he apologized to her after a few hours and they had both kissed before he slept next to her, keeping her company throughout the night.

Kayla sighed in the present. She wondered how many girls in the whole world were actually in a relationship with spirits as she put on some shorts, a tank top and her MP3 before proceeding to clean up her room.

Meanwhile, Jack was just done finishing a day of snow in North America when he saw that it was time to go back to Burgess. He flew and was about to enter Kayla's bedroom door when he stopped to do a double take. Kayla had her back turned to the window and she was wearing the shortest shorts Jack had ever seen her in.

Actually, scratch that, he has never seen her in shorts. He blushed when he realized that he caught himself admiring her shapely legs. He had never noticed it before, but she had an awesome figure.

She had her brown hair up in a messy bun and she was enthusiastically wiping her study room while singing. Jack chuckled as he let himself into her room and called out her name softly but she didn't turn. Jack then realized that she couldn't hear him as he leaned against her window sill with a look of amusement etched on his face.

The song must've change as he felt Kayla's whole mood shift and she laughed.

**"… The game makes me crazy, **

**It's like yes no, maybe, and you're calling me baby, **

**When I know that you just don't care, like, woah-oh-oh," **

Kayla sang as she wiggled her hips. Jack noted that the song sounded very pop-ish and he was suddenly amused.

**"You make me feel so right even if it's so wrong,**

**I wanna scream out loud boy, but I just bite my tongue…"**

This time she had lifted her hands up and was swaying to the music. Man, she can really sing and move, Jack thought as he grinned.

It was no lie, Kayla could sing but she'd just kept that talent hidden. Her sweet tone filled the air as she started dancing randomly to the song.

**"This one's for the girls, messing with the boys like, **

**He's the melody and she's background noise, **

**Baby why can't you see? **

**It feels so good but you're so bad for me, woah-oh-oh"**

Kayla sang as she giggled and continued to wipe down the rest of the furniture in her room as Jack silently watched on, amused.

Jack then did a double take as she bent down and blushed when he saw the apex of her… Thighs as she continued to wiggle and shake her hips to the music. Okay, this so had to end now, before he did something he regretted.

Jack cleared his throat loudly before calling Kayla's name. When she didn't respond and was still humming, he decided to walk up to her and tap her shoulder. Kayla spun around with a shock look on her face as she clapped her hand to her mouth. She relaxed when she saw that it was Jack and the winter spirit had to bite his cheeks to keep the laugh in.

Kayla laughed as she took out her ear buds. "So, how long were standing there?" Kayla asked, with a shy look on her face.

"Long enough," Jack said with a smile on he made his way to her and kissed her on the forehead.

Kayla blushed as she mock glared at him. "Don't you dare tell anyone about that, alright, Jack Frost?" Kayla threatened as she lightly punched him in the arm.

Jack smirked as he leaned in so that they their faces were only an inch apart. "Or else?" he asked as he lifted up an eyebrow.

Kayla smirked back, inching her face closer to his. "Or else I do… This," she said as she tickled him when he least expect it. Jack doubled over, laughing as he tried to get away from her fingers.

Kayla never gave up as she giggled and Jack had to push her hands away before she stopped and leaned against him, laughing. They had both somehow ended up lying on her bed as they tried to catch their breaths.

"You're a monster," Jack said as he got up to look at her after he could find his voice.

Kayla smiled at him in a sweet way. "I try," she replied as she dodged when he poked her in her sides.

Kayla giggled as she leaned in to kiss him and Jack responded back, grinning into the kiss. They pull apart and stared at each other with tenderness in their eyes.

"So, how was your day today?" Kayla asked as she brushed a few silvery strands of hair out of his eyes.

Jack grinned. "Gosh, it was fun; there was this one guy who happened to be skating while I was frosting the ground…" Jack continued his tale as Kayla laughed at the funny parts, admiring Jack's abilities. Even after a while, the fact that he can conjure up snow seemed awesome.

Kayla found herself wishing she could be a spirit too as she felt a twinge of jealousy and longing form in the pit of her belly.

"… And that's how he ended up, face first in the semi frozen pond," Jack said as he chuckled and Kayla giggled at his tale.

"That seems awesome," Kayla said wistfully.

"So, how was your day then, Kay?" Jack asked, curious, as his hand traced circles around her arm absentmindedly.

"Comparatively human next to yours," Kayla said, trying to sound nonchalant.

Jack had noticed her tone and frowned. "What's up, Kay?" he asked, sounding worried as Kayla just shrugged, debating whether or not to tell him the truth.

She sighed. "I just wish… I could be as cool as you guys, it feels weird knowing you're a human when the rest of your other friends are guardians," Kayla said and pouted, knowing that she sounded like a whiny kid but she did need to get this of her chest anyways.

Jack was silent for a while before he glanced at her, his expression thoughtful. "Kay, being a human also has its perks, you have a full life ahead of you, a future. You also have a purpose, Kay, we guardians only have one thing which is the belief of children as our priority," Jack explained, trying to reason with her.

"I don't want to be human," Kayla whispered, a sudden revelation hitting her at what had been bugging her.

Jack's eyes widened. "But Kay you are, so there's no point in wanting to change that," Jack said and Kayla looked away, trying to absorb what he was telling her. "Look, someday, you're gonna grow up, go to college, get married and have kids of your own. You're gonna stop believing in us anyway," Jack said, wincing as he spoke aloud the harsh truth.

Kayla was silent before she peeked at him. She looked shocked at his words. "But I only wanna be with you," Kayla said as her eyes screamed anguish.

Jack sighed, saddened that this conversation had to come up so soon. "Me too, Kay, but we gotta accept the fact that someday, something like that might happen," Jack reasoned with her, kissing her temple to soften the blow of his words.

Kayla shook her head in stubbornness. "I don't care, you… You mean a lot to me, Jack, and nothing could ever change that," Kayla said. Jack opened his mouth to argue but Kayla stopped him with a passionate kiss. She didn't want to hear his next words, she just wanted him. She was surprised to feel a deep longing in the pit of her belly as she twisted her fingers into his white hair, pulling him closer and over her body.

Jack responded back, synchronizing his cold lips to her warm ones as he tightened his grip on her waist. He ran his hands up and down her sides as something clicked in his head. Kayla threw her right leg onto her waist, wrapping him and pulling him impossibly closer, flush against her own body.

Kayla moaned and Jack took that opportunity to explore her mouth with his tongue, Kayla's tongue and his playfully sparring for dominance. He relished the moans that came from the back of her throat as he pulled back with a small gasp and rested his forehead against hers.

"Are you sure?" he panted, feeling the need for her growing in him. Kayla's fingers were now massaging his scalp, making it hard for him to continue. She then arched her body into his as she nodded. He looked into her brown eyes and found that they were like melted chocolate, filled with a look of wanting and… Lust?

That was all the permission Jack needed as he crashed his lips against hers, devouring her mouth as she nibbled on his bottom lip. Jack groaned, pushing her body back into the bed, feeling his hardness starting to grow. He thrust his hand into her shirt as he stroke her sides and ribs. Kayla shivered against his cold touch but she sighed and urged him to continue with a nibble on his earlobe.

Jack looked at her for permission and she nodded, guiding his hands to the hem of her t-shirt. He slowly peeled her t-shirt of her as she sighed in content. He was then met with the silky expanse of her skin and… Chest. Jack stifled a groan as he traced his finger over her chest and with slight hesitation, her breasts. He then noticed her body was covered in yellowing week old bruises and he immediately bristled.

Kayla noticed this and flushed, covering her body with her arms. Jack shook his head as he removed her arms and traced the bruises.

"Pitch did this to you?" Jack asked, keeping his tone from sounding mortified as Kayla weakly nodded.

Jack idly traced cold patterns on her sides and gently running his hands up her torso. He looked up at her and Kayla could see his mouth setting into a hard line. Kayla averted his intense gaze and stared down at the bed.

"I didn't want you to worry," she whispered, finally meeting his eyes. Kayla was surprised by the million emotions swirling in his eyes, creating a cyan mess.

"I will never, ever let anyone hurt you again, Kay," Jack said as he took her face in his hands.

Kayla's eyes welled up with tears as she nodded. Jack's eyes softened as he wiped the tears from her face, shushing and comforting her.

"You're still beautiful… To me, Kay," Jack said hesitantly as he rubbed his thumb on her cheek. Kayla wiped her tears away as she smiled radiantly at him. She suddenly kissed him passionately and gently pulled his hands so that they cupped around her breasts, finishing what he started. Jack moaned at the sudden attack and arousal as he firmly kneaded them. He was surprised to find that they fit into his palm perfectly.

Kayla moaned as she thrust her chest up, giving ample space for his cold fingers to explore. Jack then felt this sudden urge to lean down and kiss every inch of her body and that's what he did. He placed his lips on Kayla's shoulder, feeling a shot of bravery run through him, encouraged by Kayla's squirming. Her breath was coming out in short pants as her skin erupted in goose bumps when she felt Jack's lips near the mount of her breast.

Jack nipped around her breast, tempting her as his tongue shot out to drag along the base of her tits. Kayla closed her eyes and hummed, feeling a content running through her. This feels so good, she thought with a sigh as she twisted her fingers around his locks. Suddenly, she felt his cold lips wrap around her puckered nipple and nearly screamed out loud. _Holy hell…. _She thought as she panted, all thoughts flying out of the window as Jack worked her sensitive nipples, tonguing them and nibbling softly on them. She started squirming; feeling the pleasure course through her and settling somewhere down her belly. Very near _there_.

She was squirming so much that Jack had to tighten his grip as he continued twisting her nipples around his lips. His other hand snaked up to reach the other breast; his fingers pinching and pulling her harden nips.

Kayla couldn't move as she found that Jack's grip didn't permit her too and she moaned at the intense pleasure she felt his hands and lips giving her. Jack then halted all his ministrations as he lifted his head, the sudden loss of his mouth making Kayla whimper. He then leaned in to kiss her lips before nipping all the way to her ear.

"You might want to keep quiet, your grandma is just right down the hall," he said, his cold breath tantalizing her further.

She then bit her lip to keep quiet, an action which left Jack groaning and crashing his lips to hers. Unlike all their other kisses, this was passionate, heated but tender at the same time.

Kayla then wanted to get out of her shorts as it was getting uncomfortable. Jack noticed her squirming and smirked. Kayla just mock glared at him before Jack relented and helped her undress. The winter spirit cheeks flush as he felt himself growing even harder at the sight of her sodden innocent white underwear.

Kayla blushed as Jack shook his head and using his thumbs, hooked her underwear at the band before pulling it down. Kayla's face grew even redder as she realized that she was full spread out naked for him to see. She made a move to cover herself but Jack just held her still, admiring her, as Kayla flushed.

"You're so, so, beautiful, Kayla," Jack murmured, his voice deep and low with his arousal. Kayla shivered at his velvet tone and she gestured at his clothes. Jack smirked, understanding her, but wanting her to vocalize her wishes.

"You have too much clothes on, Jack," Kayla mumbled as she took hold of his hoodie and with Jack's permission, she took it off. Kayla felt her eyes widened as she discovered that Jack had abs and she traced them with her fingers. I mean, it's not like he goes around showing them of, right? Kayla flushed and bit her lip, aching for some friction to ease her aroused core.

Jack smirked as she rolled her eyes and mounted him, taking him by surprise. Jack chuckled through the kiss and he nibbled her lower lip.

"Someone liked what she saw," Jack said, somewhat cockily as Kayla giggled and silenced him by playfully nipping his lips. She felt Jack's cold hands creep down her body and before she knew what happened, her ran one singly finger through her spread out folds. Kayla shuddered and moaned as Jack smiled and continued rubbing her clit.

Kayla thrust along with Jack's fingers and she found herself moaning, crying out as Jack reached down and suckled her nipples again. She felt a very foreign sensation like a curling through her stomach and she realized she might be… _Cumming._ That very thought made Kayla blush as she gently stopped his ministrations.

The winter spirit looked at her in confusion and hurt.

"I was going to cum… And I didn't want it to be by your fingers… I want it… Um, with you… Inside me," Kayla said hesitantly as Jack realized what she meant and suddenly felt a thrill of excitement.

"Okay," he muttered, his eyes shining bright as he eagerly pulled of his pants. He was about to take of his boxers when he felt Kayla's warm hands stop him and she did it for him, noting how his manhood sprung out, hard and waiting.

"I wanna try something," Kayla whispered as Jack looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean- ughhh," Jack moaned as Kayla tentatively licked the tip of his leaking dick.

She found that it was alright and she took him all in, leaving poor Jack writhing and moaning on her bed. _God, this feels so good_, the winter spirit thought as he thrust in time with her sucks and licks.

Jack was so close to the edge when Kayla stopped and Jack gave a small whimper. It was Kayla's turn to smirk as she mounted him again and hovered her entrance near his weeping shaft.

Her daring demeanor was gone as she blushed and bit her lip. "I've never done something like this before, so I don't know how to do it," she admitted honestly as Jack gave a strained chuckled and flipped her over, disorientating Kayla.

"I'll help," Jack said as he lined himself up to her, noting how warm and wet her folds were. Jack looked at her and she nodded back, ready for him to continue. Slowly he pushed into her, inch by inch and Kayla found herself feeling so stretched and full. She was sweating and moaning, clawing his back as Jack grunted and pushed himself deeper until he was completely sheathed beneath her. In one swift movement, he broke through her barrier and he stilled to let her get used to it. Jack looked down at her and she seemed to have her eyes screwed shut, her breathing labored.

"Are you alright?" Jack asked, his breathing heavy as Kayla nodded.

Instinctively, human and spirit moved together, rocking and thrusting until they both came apart, Kayla moaning his name, bringing Jack along to the edge as he moaned her name too. He then came out of her slick and warm cavern, and they both hiss at the loss of contact.

Jack wrapped his arms around her, as Kayla snuggled to him, sighing in content. He stroked her hair and she placed soft butterfly kisses on his chest as they both came down from their high.

Jack was amazed that he felt tired and worn out by their exertions and Kayla was almost half asleep.

"I love you," he leaned down to whisper into her ear just as she closed her eyes.

"I love you too," Kayla whispered back, looking up at Jack as he was struck by how beautiful she looked under the moonlight; hair strewn, lips swollen and cheeks flush. She smiled as she kissed him tenderly and he placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

She settled back against his chest, not minding the cold and the fact that they were both still naked. His grip on her tightened as he leaned back and closed his eyes too.

"Hey, Jack?" Kayla asked in a half sleepy voice.

"Hmm?" Jack hummed as he traced comforting circles on her bare back.

"Am I in the naughty list for doing this?" she asked, half jokingly and half asleep.

Jack just chuckled as he told her to go to sleep and she did, smiling in her sleep. The winter spirit looking down at her when he was suddenly struck by how much he cared for her, more than just a friend, a brother or a lover. He loved her with everything he had. That thought scared him at the fact that he would do anything to make her happy.

_Even becoming human_, Jack thought and was hit with a revelation as he remembered their discussion before they… Did that, and despite that, his cheeks blushed at that thought.

If only he could turn back the hands of time and met her when she was still human, he knew that they would definitely have fallen in love even back then and maybe not be so bound by different fates as they were now.

Jack suddenly stiffened as he realized something. Inspiration hit him as he knew how to solve this, how to change their fates. Jack then looked down at the sleeping girl in his arms and his resolution hardened.

_I know exactly what to do to become a human again_, he thought as he threw away all logic and rationalization, determination etched all over his features.

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***blush* uhm, fyi, that was actually my first time writing something like that, so I would really like to hear your feedback on... it *blushes again***

**Oh, and the song in bold is 'Bad For Me' by Megan and Liz. It's seriously catchy. **

**And there's gonna be a major twist at the end so stay tuned.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey guys! So, this chapter was kinda inspired by The Hobbit and you'll see why in the later part of this but I gotta say, that movie was awe-some! Though not as awesome as ROTG but I digress, it was visual perfection and with a nice plot too :)**

**Oh, and there were some reviews regarding my previous chapter about the... Lemon... That had me blushing but regardless, I did want to try something new. Anyways, thanks for all the lovely reviews guys and Happy New Year! Let's roll in 2013 with a bucket load of enthusiasm and a smile on our faces. **

**Hope you guys enjoy this chapter and please, review!**

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_Where we last stop:_

_Jack suddenly stiffened as he realized something. Inspiration hit him as he knew how to solve this, how to change their fates. Jack then looked down at the sleeping girl in his arms and his resolution hardened._

_I know exactly what to do to become a human again, he thought as he threw away all logic and rationalization, determination etched all over his features._

Kayla woke up the next morning feeling stiff, sore and cold. She smiled as she felt the hard planes of Jack's chest and giggled when he held her tighter against him. Jack's breath hitched when she looked up at him because against the rising sun, her hair looked like a brown halo and her skin, glowing and radiant.

She looked breathtakingly beautiful.

She looked at him inquisitively as he smiled at her. "Morning Kayla," Jack said in a gravelly voice as he kissed her forehead.

Kayla stretched and winced before nuzzling her face against his neck. "Morning to you too," she said with a dazzling smile as she got up and stretched the rest of her body. In her groggy state, she had almost forgotten that she was naked and she covered herself hastily before laughing nervously.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Seriously, Kay?" he asked and snorted as Kayla threw the covers at him, pulling on her tank top before rolling out of bed. Jack shook his head in amusement as he too got dressed but he couldn't resist looking at Kayla's undressed bottom half of her body before resisting the urge to smile like a buffoon.

"I saw what you did Jack," Kayla's voice interrupted him as she smiled at him with a naughty glint in her eyes.

Jack shrugged. "What can I say, my girl's hot," he said as he winked at her and enveloped her in an embrace before letting her go.

Kayla placed her palm on his face as she smiled at him tenderly. "You stayed the whole night?" she asked, the corners of her lips tugging up in a smile.

Jack took her palm and kissed it. "Yup, the whole night, now get dressed, we're going to see Bunnymund," he said with a devilish grin.

Kayla dropped her palm as she stared at Jack in shock, as if he'd gone crazy.

"We're going to see Bunnymund, Kay, now get dressed," Jack said, enunciating each word as if she wasn't capable of understanding it.

Kayla snapped out of her shock. "How…?" she trailed of, looking clueless.

In answer to her question, Jack took out a snow globe from his hoodie's pocket. He smirked.

"We're going down to the Warren in Santa's style," the winter spirit announced as he picked up his staff and gestured for her to hurry up. Kayla quickly got into a pair of clean underwear, jeans, and a long top while throwing a sweater on, in case of the weather. She felt a thrill of excitement course through her.

They were going back to see the guardians and although she didn't know Jack's reason, she had complete and utter faith in his plans. Jack threw down the snow globe as once again, Kayla found herself sucked into the colorful vortex, preparing for whatever plans her spirit boyfriend was hatching.

Kayla and Jack landed in the soft green grass of Bunnymund's Warren. Kayla oohed at the beautiful scenery; it looked like they were in a meadow. Running water could be heard, the sunlight filtering through the green trees, eggs running at every crevice in the Warren… Wait a minute, eggs?! Kayla dodged the peculiar sight with a look of apprehension.

"Well, I knew when a cold breeze blew in, you'd come by Frostbite," Bunnymund's voice could be heard as he walked to them, an annoyed look on his face. "Oh, hey Kayla," Bunnymund said in a kinder tone as he smiled at the teen who was still looking around the Warren with huge eyes.

"Oh, those are just the eggs, don't mind them, Easter is coming soon anyway," Bunny said, his nose twitching as he tried hard not to laugh at her weirded out expression.

"Bunny, we need your help," Jack said, not even bothering to take bait of the Pooka's insult. Kayla then realized that Bunny was there and she offered him a stunned wave.

"Hey Bunny, nice place you got here," Kayla said in an amused tone as she picked up one of the eggs but Bunnymund just picked it out of her hands and set it to the ground.

Jack took a deep breath. "I need to go and see Father Time and you're the only one who can help," Jack said in a determined tone as Bunny who was handling the feisty egg suddenly dropped the little buggar and stared at him with shocked and apprehensive eyes.

The Guardian of Hope then got over the shock as he cleared his throat and narrowed his eyes.

"And why would you want to visit him mate? The old man doesn't like people to visit him," the Pooka said in a wary voice.

"I… I… I want to become human again," Jack said as he slumped his shoulders with a determined look on his face.

The huge bunny and Kayla both stared at him with wide eyes.

"Heh?" Bunnymund said in shock, his Australian accent even more pronounced.

"Exactly Jack, heh?" Kayla echoed Bunnymund.

Jack rolled his eyes at their stunned faces and gave an exasperated sigh.

"I want to become human," Jack said slowly, dragging out every word for emphasis.

The huge Pooka shook his head as if to clear a daze and stared at the winter spirit with a look of apprehension. He looked at Kayla who also seemed confuse and everything clicked in the huge rabbits head.

"You want to become human for the ankle biter, don't you?" Bunnymund said as he gestured at Kayla who had grown wide eyed.

"Jack, you can't be serious?" Kayla gasped out. Jack nodded, unsure how to explain to the both of them at the same time.

It was quiet for a second before they burst out in questions.

"Do you realize that if you become human back again, the whole world won't have a Guardian of Fun anymore?" Bunnymund said in a loud voice, trying to shake some sense into his fellow Guardian's head.

"Why are you doing this Jack?" Kayla asked confusion in her brown eyes. "Is this because of what we discussed last night?" she asked again.

"Yes, Kayla, I wanted to become a human, for you. I could see how much being separated would be bad for us and I wanted to always be there for you, so I thought about changing back to a human again," Jack admitted quietly, his pale cheeks flushed as he wished with all his heart that Bunnymund didn't have to hear this conversation.

The huge Pooka cocked his ears and his nose twitched when he eyed his younger friend. Clearly Jack had had a lot to think before he decided this. Kayla looked like she wanted to smack some sense into him. He understood her predicament.

"Okay," Bunnymund replied in small voice, barely heard above the couple's bickering.

"What?" Kayla gasped, shock completely written in her chocolate eyes.

"Yes!" Jack said as he flashed a huge grin to Bunnymund.

Bunny stared at her, thinking of how to phrase his words before he explained to her. The Guardian of Hope would never admit it but he did understand Jack's sacrifice. After all, he did go through almost the same thing but that was a different story…

Bunny sighed and pulled Kayla to a corner where they could talk without Jack overhearing. The winter spirit looked confuse but at Bunnymund's imperceptible nod, Jack understood and relented.

"What is he doing Bunny? I never asked him to do this for me," Kayla huffed in a quiet tone, looking at her boyfriend as if Jack had already gone mad.

Bunny leaned down and looked at her with understanding eyes. "Kayla, you do know that Jack cares for you right?" Bunny said as he wrapped a comforting paw around her shoulder.

Kayla nodded, frustrated. "I know that, but-"

"He cares for you enough to become human, just for you," Bunnymund said and he knew he struck a nerve when Kayla fell quiet and her expression became contemplative.

Kayla looked at him with wide, earnest eyes, "He would really do that?" she asked almost inaudibly.

Bunnymund surprised her by smiling a kind smile. "I believe he would, Kay," he answered. "He's mad about you, sweetheart, and I wouldn't be surprised if he flew all the way to the moon and back if you were in the slightest hint of trouble," the guardian said, his voice radiating sincerity, his emerald eyes boring into Kayla's brown ones with a kind look.

Kayla slumped her shoulders in defeat. "I just don't want him to get hurt," she said softly, not daring to look her fluffy friend in the eye. "The others would hate me if anything happened to Jack because of me… And I already promised Tooth…" the young teen trailed of, staring at a particularly beautiful waterfall springing out colorful egg after colorful egg.

Bunnymund scoffed and rolled his eyes good-naturedly as Kayla flashed him a death glare. "Kay, we wouldn't blame you, it was all Frosty's idea. But we do care for him," Bunnymund finished in a quiet tone, his ears twitching at the notion of anything happening to his friend.

Kayla sighed, her resolution waning as she gave a faint nod. The tall Guardian of Hope smiled at her before turning back to his not so subtle impatient frost friend.

"Oi, Frost, you're girlfriend said yes," Bunny said, drawling out the word 'girlfriend'.

Jack flew to Kayla and stared at her with barely concealed glee and apprehension as his icy blue stare probed her warm brown ones. Kayla offered him a weak smile and Jack flashed her a look that spoke volumes as if to say 'everything will be alright'.

Bunnymund took it as a silent cue and tapped his foot on the ground, creating a human size hole for the both of them. Jack offered his hand and Kayla took it, a notion that they were in this together.

They bid Bunny goodbye as Kayla hugged her huge Pooka friend.

"Oh, and Bunny, please don't tell any of the other guardians, just in case," Jack whispered in a rushed way as Bunnymund nodded and Kayla just looked puzzled, having not cached the last part of their conversation.

Jack then leapt in the hole and dragged Kayla along with her as she screamed in exhilaration, finding Bunnymund's Warren disappearing into a muddle of roots and underground walls. She laughed at the sensation of feeling as if she were sliding and looked up to see Jack flying above her, in time with her sliding. She laughed and Jack flashed her a wide grin.

"Better than the snow globes?" Jack yelled above the sound of sliding a Kayla's shrill laughs.

"Hell yeah!" Kayla screamed in a carefree way as she lifted her hands up to gain more leverage.

The underground slide than ended as Kayla and Jack got spat out into a bright tunnel, both of them shielding their eyes. They both landed on an uneven surface… Well, Kayla mostly landed on her butt but Jack just hovered above her, looking disoriented.

Kayla shook her head to rid herself of her daze as she opened her eyes against the searing bright light which subdued just enough for her to crack open a peek. She gasped at the sheer beauty of this place.

The grounds were covered in what looked like white down and there were huge tower clocks everywhere. Literally, _everywhere_. Some of them were so tall; they broke the sky, rising from the soft down ground like a monolith, dawning over them like a skyscraper. They were in every shape and sizes; Big Ben, huge tower clocks of different shapes and sizes, some of them in the shape of different landmarks.

She noticed that one looked like the Eiffel Tower with the same height and stature, but with a clock embedded in its metal twisting. Some of them were so small; they looked fit to belong in a mouse's hole. The sound of ticking clocks filled the air, sounding oddly natural, like how birds in a park would. The air smelled of the sharp twang of metal and the sky was an odd shade of pearly gray, accentuating the mystical and intimidating demeanor this place held.

Kayla then realized that there were sprawling hills everywhere too, where they could see. It was covered with a light mist that smelled of dew and fresh mornings, giving this place a much less surreal feeling to it.

She turned around to find Jack next to her; they were both shoulder to shoulder, admiring the beautiful but somewhat intimidating view. Jack grasped her shoulder as they watched images forming from the mists, looking like holographic images of different places, and people. Kayla gasped as she made out the figure of Adolf Hitler, standing on a podium addressing a huge crowd, the image then changed to Shakespeare when he was younger, looking strained and hunching over a piece of paper. She saw dinosaurs, meteorites, people marching and space ships hovering, all clouding the air and making her head spin.

"I knew you would come some day," an elderly, strained voice said from behind them and the pair turned around in alarm to address their latest addition. "It was only just a matter of time."

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**I'm sorry if there are any errors or grammatical mistakes as I tend to make some if I type to fast here as I'm posting this at 10.30 and like, need to sleep and wake up at 6 tomorrow cause its the first day of school *groans* Anyways, it is my last year in school *shrugs***

**Oh, and what did you guys think of my Hobbit inspiration of the place Kayla and Jack landed? The movie was so visually spectacular I nearly peed in my pants (though it kinda was because I didn't pee before the movie, heh, TMI. I ran out near the end as I couldn't take it anymore, HAHA)**

**Thank you to all the new reviewers and major love to those who have stuck by this story since the start. Here, have a... Carrot... Or something...**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please, review! Thank you! **


	15. Chapter 15

**So, school just started and it kinda... Sucked. Since there isn't much work to do in school, I kinda had time to post this. I also think I might start a sequel but I'm not sure though...**

**Anyways, here's chapter 15 and I hope you guys enjoy it! Please, review! Thank you!**

******Warning: This chapter contains a detailed sexual scene otherwise known as a lemon.**

* * *

Where we last stop:

_She turned around to find Jack next to her; they were both shoulder to shoulder, admiring the beautiful but somewhat intimidating view. Jack grasped her shoulder as they watched images forming from the mists, looking like holographic images of different places, and people. Kayla gasped as she made out the figure of Adolf Hitler, standing on a podium addressing a huge crowd, the image then changed to Shakespeare when he was younger, looking strained and hunching over a piece of paper. She saw dinosaurs, meteorites, people marching and space ships hovering, all clouding the air and making her head spin._

_"I knew you would come some day," an elderly, strained voice said from behind them and the pair turned around in alarm to address their latest addition. "It was only just a matter of time."_

Kayla turned and gasped. An old, bearded man stood before them, clad in a robe and carrying a scythe. In his other hand was a huge clock which hung on a brass chain, rusted yet at the same time it shone with a new metallic hue. Upon closer inspection, his robes looked like they were woven metallic rays and deep set lines engraved his weary face at the sight of two teenagers in his home.

Jack seemed to recover first and shook his head. "Hello, Father Time," Jack said as he flew to the old spirit and greeted him. Father Time nodded, looking almost bored as Kayla flashed him an uncertain smile.

"Kayla Megan Montgomery, born when the wind changes and summer turns to autumn. Lived for 16 years and will pass on at the age of-"

"That's not why we're here," Kayla interrupted quickly as Jack fell quiet. Her mortality was apparently a sensitive topic for them to discuss.

At her statement, the old spirit tightened his grip on his scythe as he regarded them with shrewd eyes.

"Then why are you here?" Father Time asked, his cold grey eyes staring back and forth between girl and winter spirit.

"We're here because I was wondering if you could turn back time and make me a human again," Jack's voice faltered slightly at his request but he straightened his back in determination.

Father Time's eyebrows shot up as he looked at Jack suspiciously, the corners of his mouth twitching.

"Jackson Overland Frost," Father Time said in with a small smile. "Hitting the big 340 already?" he rasped out, his features resembling into a grimace.

Despite Father Time's less than friendly attitude, Jack grinned and nodded. The old spirit then stroked his beard thoughtfully as he replayed the young guardian's request in his mind.

"You want me to reverse back time and make you human again?" Father Time asked quietly as Kayla looked at Jack warily.

The winter spirit nodded.

"Do you realize that if I did, you wouldn't have met her," the spirit of Time said as he gestured to Kayla who was staring at him with widened eyes.

Jack's blue gaze widened as he contemplated what the old spirit said. The Guardian of Fun shook his head.

Father Time sighed. "Jack Frost, love is a volatile thing; full of hope and promises but can prove destructive once mishandled. I've seen too many men fall because of love," Father Time said in a wistful tone. "Love for money, love for spite and love for vengeance, all of it," he muttered and the scene around them changed and they were engulfed in holographic images from all of mankind's bloodiest wars and Kayla cringed, her eyes shut as a rather disturbing image of a man raping a nun passed by her.

"I know," Jack said back in a calm tone, not affected by the images. "But this is not about a war, it would not be a backlash, I know what I'm doing," the winter spirit calmly addressed his older fellow spirit.

"Yes, but do you know the consequences involving the process of turning back time?" Father Time spat out, his cool demeanor back.

Jack squared his shoulders. "Yes."

"So, can you do it?" Kayla asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

The two spirits looked at her in shock, obviously forgetting she was still there.

Kayla felt surprise as she saw a frown grace the face of the older spirit.

"I'm afraid not," Father Time replied in an impassive tone. "340 years to undo time is just too precious and fragile to handle, I'm sorry, but your quest was in vain," the older spirit said as he turned on his heel and walked back the way he came.

The older spirit subtly flicked his hand and suddenly, the lovers found themselves freefalling through the endless pearly grey sky. Before Kayla could even open her mouth to scream at the sudden loss of gravity, she found herself falling face first and landed on Jack.

The winter spirit groaned at the sudden weight on his chest as he screwed his eyes shut to get his bearings right. Jack tentatively cracked open an eye and he found that they were in Kayla's room, landing perfectly on her bed.

Kayla grunted as she pushed herself upright and opened her eyes to stop the spinning when she saw Jack's weak smile.

"Nice fellow, wasn't he?" the winter spirit said in an attempt at a joke as Kayla gave a small smile and got of Jack, extending her hand to help him up. With a jolt, Kayla realized she was in her room as a small gasp left her mouth.

She glanced outside to see that the sky was the shade of late morning and she realized that they hadn't been in Father Time's lair for an hour.

"What…?" she trailed of as she saw that Jack's expression mirrored hers. Confused and disheartened.

"He didn't want to help us," Jack whispered, averting his sad gaze to her window, hating the morning for being so bright and colorful, mockingly paradoxical to his mood.

~WOC~

In his Warren, Bunnymund stood organizing eggs according to which country they were suppose to go. Leaving the task to one of his egg assistants, his mind then wondered to Jack and Kayla who were supposedly visiting Father Time.

His emerald eyes filled with sadness as he felt the familiar pang of guilt and longing, knowing he himself was once pushed into the almost same position as Jack. The willingness to give up everything for someone you loved.

Heaven knows he understood what Jack was going through.

~WOC~

Night seemed to come fairly quick at the Montgomery residence as Kayla sat staring outside at her window, watching the light snowflake fall and hearing the winter wind rattling against her windowsill.

The events of today still bounced back and forth from her mind, no matter how much she wanted them to disappear. Lucid daydreams forming in her mind as she imagined what if Father Time had said yes and a shudder ran through her.

"You know, you should really cover up with a blanket," a quiet voice brought her back to the present as she gasped and turned around to find her winter lover climbing in through the window with a hint of a smirk on his pale lips.

"Don't sneak up on me like that," Kayla chastised but relented and pecked him on the cheek as a greeting.

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't realize that Jack had practically breezed into her room through the window. She stifled a groan as to how late it was right now.

Kayla glanced up at Jack and noted how different he looked. This morning he had told her that he wanted some time alone to gather her thoughts and she had been more than happy to let him leave, reeling in her own thoughts and disappointment for a while.

She noted that he had this look of concentration on his face and she found it adorable as they sat beside her bed.

"A penny for your thoughts?" the brunette asked as Jack glanced at her with a tired smile.

"I just wish I knew what to do."

"I don't," Kayla said and Jack looked at her in bewilderment. Kayla reeled back at his intense stare as she looked him square in the eye.

"Jack, it doesn't matter," Kayla whispered quietly, averting her gaze to her entwined hands, defeated by the winter spirit's intense stare.

Jack then lifted her face to look her right in the eyes. Blue met brown as they both stood stuck in an internal debate of reasoning against each other's actions.

His face softened as he took one look at her determined yet tired stare.

"You do know I care for you, right?" Jack asked, his thumb idly brushing her jaw as she nodded. "I'm doing this for us, Kay, I really want to… Be with you," he mumbled as he leaned his forehead against hers.

"It's funny, isn't it?" she whispered against his cold lips as he felt her smile.

Silence.

"What's funny?" Jack finally murmured back, trying to keep up with her train of thought.

"That fate could align us to something like this," she mumbled as she broke away and gave him a sad smile. "Jack, even if I was forced to grow up and I might forget you, but I won't," she admitted, gazing shyly at her lover as she gave her admittance.

"I don't want you too," Jack whispered as he pressed his lips against hers. Once, twice, thrice.

Kayla sighed as she gripped his neck and brought him closer, feeling the foreign yet familiar sensation of want laced with sadness and desperation. She sighed as she felt his cool breath against her neck, running her hands through his white hair.

"Love me," she whispered, finally giving in to her desires when Jack suckled the spot beneath her earlobe.

He pulled back to look at her, unsure of what she just said.

"Love me," she whispered again, getting lost in his sapphire gaze.

Jack gulped and nodded as his lips were against hers, forceful yet tender at the same time. She caught his lower lip between hers and sucked gently, earning a quiet groan from him.

His hands wondered as he felt her silky porcelain skin under his cool fingertips, running his fingers up her sides and hands, making sure to caress every inch of exposed skin.

They quickly undressed, the atmosphere charged; static filled the air as Jack loved every inch of Kayla's skin, nibbling, sucking and kissing. When he reached the apex of her thighs, he dipped his head down and, spurned by the sight of her exposed pink centre, he reached down ran his tongue through it, loving the throaty moan she gave.

He matched her buckling hips for almost rough licks and nips before he felt her thighs quake and her breath labored.

Jack let go as he got up and cradled her face in his hands, kissing her on her lips. Kayla moaned as she passionately kissed his lips, tasting her arousal on them.

She bit her lip as Jack impatiently lined himself to her core and they were rocking and thrusting with wild abandonment, an action which Kayla know will leave her body sore in the morning. They both reached their peak as Jack gritted his teeth and Kayla moaned as he spilled inside her.

They settled against each other as they both tried to catch their breaths.

"So, are you well loved now," Jack said in a semi cocky grin as Kayla smirked and planted a chaste kiss on his lips.

Jack suddenly felt an overwhelming tiredness crash upon him and he closed his eyes as he held on tighter to Kayla.

Kayla felt the atmosphere relaxing and with a surprise notion, she realized Jack was asleep, something he never did before. She then gently dragged herself up as she admired his features, bathed in the moonlight.

Asleep, he looked so peaceful yet vulnerable that it made Kayla's heart clench. She traced his features with a light finger as she noticed that he looked more like a child when he was asleep. Kayla then realized that Jack looked more like a man-child. A teenager. A mix of both worlds; innocent yet world weary, aged yet young. She also realized that he was forced to grow up way too early; from his death to being ignored for almost 300 years and her heart saddened at that thought.

She ran the back of her hand gently across his face as his cool breath struck her digits from his slightly parted, swollen lips and Kayla smiled.

She then noticed that it was full moon out. Grabbing a near blanket that got tossed during their amorous activities, she took a seat by the window sill as she looked up at the beautiful bright moon.

"Hey, Lunar," she greeted and smiled when she thought the moon seemed to glow brighter.

She turned around to glance at Jack, a small sigh escaping her lips as she looked at her sleeping lover, the sheets entangled around his lithe body, his hair strewn and eyes closed in deep sleep.

"I love him so much Lunar, but what he doesn't know is that I'd give anything to be with him too," she said and released a small breath.

She ran her hands through her long hair as she yanked at the knots in frustration.

"But somehow, I have a feeling that we're meant to be together even though how different our lives are… I just know it," the brunette whispered as she glanced at the moon longingly, noting the darker smudge on its surface as she shuddered.

She glanced at Jack again. "I just know it," she whispered again before bundling up and heading back to bed, nestling against her beloved as sleep finally found its way to her eyes, dragging her down to its warm and problem free depths.

Jack awoke the next morning with a low groan. He closed his eyes, refusing to open them to the Sun's too bright rays. He then felt the steady rise and falls of someone else next to him and immediately stiffened, before his sleep muddle brain registered that it was Kayla.

Jack opened his eyes and squinted against the morning bright light. He looked to where his arm was locked around Kayla's waist and saw that she was still asleep, a small smile on her face. With a huff, Jack realized that this was the first time he ever slept in for that long. Scratch that, he almost never slept at all. At this notion, the winter spirit panicked and Kayla opened her eyes, glimpsing a very worried Jack Frost.

She immediately shot up. "What is it? What's wrong?" she rushed out urgently but Jack just looked thoughtful.

"I've just never slept this long, that's all," he said with a small shrug as Kayla visibly relaxed.

"Did I wear you out too much last night?" Kayla asked in a teasing tone as she ruffled his hair, grinning.

Jack shot her a huge smile.

"Nah, in fact, I think I may have more where that came from," the winter spirit said slyly as he hooked his arm around her waist and twisted her so that she was pinned underneath him.

Kayla giggled into their kiss as Jack attacked her lips with playful fervor.

Suddenly, a loud crash could be heard as the both of them broke apart and stared at the source of the sound.

Kayla got up with a wrapped blanket around herself as she got up to investigate. She saw broken shards of glass down on the floor, surrounding what looked like an… Egg?

She gave a confuse stare as she picked up the egg of the ground. It was a painted in a garish golden color, obviously for distinction purposes.

"Uhm… Jack?" Kayla said uncertainly as she handed her boyfriend the egg.

Jack stared at it inquisitively before recognition dawned on his face; this was from Bunnymund, and apparently it must be important.

"It's a message from Bunnymund, there's a message in there," Jack said urgently as he quickly put on his hoodie and Kayla put on a huge sweater and some shorts.

Jack took the egg in his hand, weighing it before smashing it onto the ground, the loud shattering sound giving way to Bunnymund's disembodied voice.

"Mate, you have to get down to the Workshop now, North wants to meet all of us and bring Kayla along too. Hurry, it's urgent," Bunnymund's voice hesitated for a little while before he continued. "Manny requested for her," the Pooka finished and silence resumed back in the room.

Kayla looked at Jack with huge eyes.

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**A huge thank you to everyone who reviewed and major love for pushing my story to 70+ reviews. I never would've thought my story would come this far but thank you for making it happen. **

**Oh, and also This chapter was inspired by Hunter Hayes's 'Wanted'. He sounds awesome and looks like a cross between Peeta and Cato. Hmm. **

**6 reviews before I post the next chapter :)**


	16. Chapter 16

**Okay, so as promised after 6 reviews, Chapter 16.**

**This chapter was a little difficult to write because of all the development of characters emotions and was so dang long that I had to separate them to 2. Also to give a more dramatic effect. Heh. **

**Also, to all of you who asked me if Kayla was gonna become a guardian, the answer is in another chapter and to explain the twist, I would definitely need a sequel. Yup.**

**Anyways, here's chapter 16 and I hope you guys enjoy it! Please, review! Thank you!**

* * *

Where we last stop:

_Jack took the egg in his hand, weighing it before smashing it onto the ground, the loud shattering sound giving way to Bunnymund's disembodied voice._

_"Mate, you have to get down to the Workshop now, North wants to meet all of us and bring Kayla along too. Hurry, it's urgent," Bunnymund's voice hesitated for a little while before he continued. "Manny requested for her," the Pooka finished and silence resumed back in the room._

_Kayla looked at Jack with huge eyes._

"Manny? He requested for me?" Kayla asked in a sharp intake of breath as Jack nodded and used up the last of the snow globes North gave to him. He didn't hesitate as he threw the snow globe to the ground and he and Kayla walked in the colorful portal, the atmosphere pensive.

Their feet found purchase on the snow ground covered floor and Kayla winced at the sharp cold that could be felt to her bone.

Kayla and Jack held hands as they both walked to the opening of Santa's majestic Workshop and with a jolt; Kayla realized she was back here again. She smiled a private smile before the door opened and a yeti ushered them in.

Kayla grinned at him and the yeti smiled back as she and Jack quickly made their way to the Globe Room where they knew North and the others would be.

When they approached the room, Jack gave a surprised gasp and it was easy to see why. The whole room was bathed in moonlight, shining brightly down them like a spotlight. Kayla squinted as she made out the silhouettes of the other four guardians.

A pair of feathery arms engulfed her in a hug and Kayla laughed as she hugged Tooth back. Tooth's pink irises searched Kayla's brown ones with a un-Tooth like intensity as the Guardian of Memories frown.

"We don't know why Manny called you here," Tooth stated her tone frantic as she gestured to the opening of the Workshop roof where Kayla did a double take. The moon looked as if it was mere inches away from North's roof and Kayla took a step back.

Bunnymund came bounding up to the party as he threw a furtive glance at Jack.

"Any idea why he called the ankle biter?" Bunnymund asked his voice gruff and Australian accent more pronounced whenever he was stressed.

The winter spirit shrug as he greeted Tooth and also Sandy who floated up to grin at Kayla before the teen wrapped an arm around the little golden man.

"Neither of us does, but Manny must have a reason," a Russian accent said and Kayla was confronted with North's strained yet smiling face. Kayla grinned as she hugged North in a way of greeting, this strange meetings with the rest of her friends feeling oddly celebrative.

"So-"

_Come closer my child._

Kayla blinked. "Who said that?" Kayla asked as she looked around at her guardian friends as they were still talking, discussing why Manny could have brought them here.

"Come closer," the voice whispered, firm yet reedy.

All the guardians ceased their discussion as they looked at each other with wide eyes.

"Manny," North whispered as he took in the struck faces of the rest of the guardians and oddly, Kayla.

"You heard him too?"

Kayla nodded as she looked around, trying to find the source of that voice that strangely sounded as if it inhabited her brain or something.

"Come closer," the voice whispered again as the moonlight shining through the roof grew even brighter.

Tooth looked panicked as she stared at Kayla and Jack looked as if he were ready to grab her and fly away at the first sign of unease. Sandy just looked uneasy as he glanced back and forth between the other guardians.

"Do you think this is alright?" North whispered to Bunnymund and the huge Pooka shook his head.

"Crikey, I don't think Manny has ever called one of us so personally unless it's to be a guardian," Bunnymund replied, shaking his head.

"And Kayla isn't even a spirit," Jack concluded, finishing their train of thought.

Unbeknownst to them, Kayla had started to walk on her own accord, towards the bright moonlight, seemingly hypnotized.

Jack realized that she had moved and was about to stop her before she held up her hand.

"We haven't figured anything out yet, you can't just go barging in to something like this," Jack said, desperation creeping in his tone as he looked at her determined expression. He knew that look well. It meant that she had already made a choice.

"Then all it requires is just a leap of faith," Kayla said dreamily as she walked closer, beckoned by the voice in her mind.

She turned around to face her friends, who were all staring anxiously at her. Sandy was vividly shooting sand image after sand image on his head, his expression terrified.

"If anything happens, I just want you all to know that you guys are the most awesomest guardians ever," she said, regarding the four of them. She turned to Jack with a tender expression on her face.

"I love you," she mouthed at him before taking a leap of faith and stepping into the moonlight.

She felt as if the breath had been knocked out of her as she vaguely heard voices calling her name. Before her whole world went black, Kayla looked up and got a glimpse of the Moon, big, bright and beckoning her with welcome arms.

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**A huge thank you to everyone who reviewed and stuck with this story. Peanut butter jelly sandwiches for everyone!**

**Oh, and I can't stop with the inspiring music so this chapter was inspired by Florence and The Machines 'Breath Of Life'. It's epic. Word. **

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review!**

**8 reviews before I post the new chapter :)**


	17. Chapter 17

**So, as promised after 8 reviews, Chapter 17.**

**This chapter tells more of Kayla's transformation and if you're really curious as to what she is now and why she didn't have to die a horrible yet noble death to be immortal, please, read my author's note at the bottom of this chapter. It'll help in understanding a lot.**

**Anyways, here's chapter 17 and I hope you guys enjoy it! Please review! Thank you!**

* * *

Where we last stop:

_"I love you," she mouthed at him before taking a leap of faith and stepping into the moonlight._

_She felt as if the breath had been knocked out of her as she vaguely heard voices calling her name. Before her whole world went black, Kayla looked up and got a glimpse of the Moon, big, bright and beckoning her with welcome arms._

"No, Kay!" Jack screamed as he made a lunged towards her, fighting of North's steel grip, his staff shooting out blue icicles in warning.

"Jack, calm down, we can't help her, it's up to Manny now," North said, straining to hold the heartbroken guardian in his arms.

Jack fought with everything he had, and Sandy had to help North subdue the winter spirit. Jack finally sobered up in North's arms as he gripped the huge guardian and gave an anguish sob.

Tooth flitted over and stroked his head with a shaky hand, agony and confusion written all over her face. Bunny just hung his head and looked anguish as he stared at Kayla's still body.

Suddenly, a brighter light filtered the room as the guardians gasp when they saw Kayla's body being lifted in midair.

_Manny, don't take her away from me_, Jack silently pleaded as Kayla's body rose up above the ground; her hands limp at her sides from the defied gravity and her brown hair strewn out, fluttering from the breeze.

A light then wrapped itself around her, bright as the shining sun, so much so that the guardians had to shield their eyes.

Jack peeked from under his eyelashes at the stunning view as Kayla's body couldn't be seen anymore. The light seemed to have a life of its own, pulsating and burning with intensity the guardians had never seen before. It seemed to reach its crescendo as the light gave a final brilliant flash and disappeared, gently depositing Kayla on the ground.

She lied there motionless as the unnatural bright moonlight disappeared and was left with only the subdued version of moon rays, dancing into the Workshop, illuminating the still teen on the floor.

Jack gasped as North let him go and he ran over to Kayla, bending down and drawing her to his lap, checking to see if she was alright. He then pushed her auburn hair aside as he checked for a pulse.

Wait, auburn hair?

Jack did a double take as he looked at Kayla… Only, it didn't exactly look like Kayla. The rest of the guardians flitted over as Tooth took Kayla's hand in hers, waiting to see if she would wake up.

Jack studied her appearance as the facial features looked different; sharper, and her lips were pinker than usual, safe for the small freckle she had on the corner of her jaw, she looked… Different.

"She's changed," North stated, looking at the girl as Jack stroked her hair. In their panic state, they didn't realize that Kayla had gave a small cough and seemed to be rousing.

Tooth noticed and gestured at her frantically. Jack tightened his hold on her as her eyelids fluttered open, revealing hazel colored eyes instead of her normal brown ones.

She seemed to catch her surroundings before opening her mouth.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" she asked in a throaty voice as Kayla noticed the other guardians looking at her strangely. Even Bunnymund had his mouth wide opened.

"What? Don't tell me Manny made me look like Pitch," Kayla said, her eyes twinkling as Jack gave a huge sigh of relief and hugged her tight.

The winter spirit pulled back to stare at her. "Next time, don't ever do anything like that," Jack said and gave an uncharacteristic glare.

Kayla groaned as she covered her face with her long auburn hair. "Yes, dad," she joked and was struck by the different colored strands that fell to her face.

She pulled back with a gasp to gather her hair and stared at it. Kayla looked up, panicked at the other guardians as North walked to the side panel of the Globe Room and picked up his discarded sword. He handed it to her silently as Kayla carefully looked at her reflection on the surface. The other guardians were stone still, waiting to see her reaction.

What she saw in the reflective edge of the sword made her gasp and touch her face. She looked absurdly different from her previous self as she scrutinized the mirage like image for hints of the face she'd kept with her for 16 years.

She found none.

Except for the freckle on her jaw.

Again, she scrutinized her image as slowly, her original features became more pronounce; her lips were pinker and fuller but they still retained her original shape, her cheekbones were sharper and more pronounced now than her usual high cheekbones but what struck her the most were her eyes.

They were a brilliant hazel in color.

Kayla gave a small gasp as she looked at them closely, struggling to find a hint of brown in them but as usual, there was none.

She looked like she just had a whole do-over.

Kayla put down the sword and gulped as she stared at the other guardians who were anxiously waiting to see what she had to say.

"I don't understand," Kayla said as she looked at them for answers.

"When you turn immortal, your whole appearance changes, to fit what you are now," Bunnymund explained as he looked carefully at her. "Right, North?" Bunny asked, turning to North so that he could explain to the confused spirit.

The usually jolly guardian was stroking his beard as he seemed to be deep in thought, his eyes staring at Kayla as if she were a newly discovered species. _It can't be_, North thought as he shook his head as if to ward of the thoughts that don't make sense.

"Bunny is right… But the funny thing is, I don't know what you could possibly… Be," North hesitated as he looked at the newly made spirit with compassion in his eyes.

Jack was standing, his body language protective when he held Kayla and he stared at North.

"What do you mean?" the winter spirit asked, in a slightly weirded out tone as he turned to look at his beloved.

"It means that she's a hybrid or something like that," the Tooth Fairy whispered as she helped Kayla up from the ground.

When Kayla stood, she felt as if her whole body were weightless… Like she could fly.

Kayla sucked in a deep breath and commanded her body to lift of and surprisingly, she started hovering in front of her friends, who all had looks of shock and amazement on their faces. Kayla steadied herself midair as she gave them a grin. Kayla then noticed that she was clad in a soft blue dress, looking like a soft blue mist that was enveloping her body.

Jack was grinning from ear to ear as he also flew midair to meet her and laughed when Kayla started hovering unsteadily, ending up with him managing to catch her in time before she crashed to the ground.

North gave a huge belly laugh as he smashed Kayla in a hug, pushing the wind out of her system.

"Welcome to our world, Kay," he said and Kayla pulled back to give him a huge megawatt smile before she was being pulled into hugs by the other guardians.

After the greetings and laughs had died down, Kayla fluttered over to North and looked the huge Guardian of Wonder eye to eye. Kayla then had a thought.

"North, if I'm a spirit or immortal or whatever I am… Does it mean nobody but you guys can see me now?" Kayla asked quietly and cautiously. Immediately the whole celbrative atmosphere sobered up and everyone turned to North.

The huge Guardian of Wonder nodded sadly. Kayla's face fell.

"If that's so, then can I please go and visit my grandma… To tell her, goodbye," Kayla said and she refused to let her good mood be crashed by this.

Turning immortal was just so bittersweet.

He smiled kindly at her.

"Of course you can Kayla, you don't have to ask me permission for that," North reminded her as Kayla gave a small smile and flew to Jack, whom she beckoned to follow her and soon, the two teen spirits were out into the night, leaving behind the older guardians to ponder about her transformation.

"What could've prompted Manny to change her and why did she not have to die?" Tooth shot at North as soon as their retreating figures were gone.

"Maybe he took pity on Jack and decided to give him what he wants, since he can't become human," Bunnymund said nonchalantly as his eyes widened when he realized that he had told Jack's secret.

Sandy started shooting sand image after sand image on his head, looking horrified.

"Jack wanted to become a human?" North asked, his face puzzled.

Bunnymund closed his mouth in defeat before nodding. "He even went to visit Father Time to see if that old git could change him back to a human," Bunny said, figuring that the other guardians at least deserve to know what their youngest was plotting.

Tooth gasped. "That's the silliest thing I've ever heard," she said as her eyes narrowed in exasperation. The Sandman just gave them a strange look.

"Maybe Bunny's right," North said, over their skeptical and shocked expressions. "Think about it, Jack has been alone for almost 300 years and he still feels like he doesn't quite fit in with us; maybe Kayla really is the one for him," the jolly guardian replied, his blue eyes twinkling.

The protesting guardians then fell silent at his words.

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**A/N: Okay, so if you guys are really curious as to what Kayla really is, she's a Feeling. She's not a Guardian or a spirit. She's a Feeling. I invented the concept of Feelings as a special group of immortals who didn't have to sacrifice their lives to become spirits. In my next story (the sequel) we'll see why Kayla was chosen, have a further detailed delving into the world of Feelings and the consequences involved with a special change of events, but that's only in the sequel. But that's in the sequel. Yup, I'm currently writing the first draft for it. **

**Back to here; Feelings are immortals who embody a certain human emotion which was very pronounced in their human state. For example, if you're a very kind person overall, you become the Spirit of Kindness. It was kinda inspired by the Spirit of Christmas and the Spirit of Forgiveness.**

**Also, I created the whole concept, terms and characteristics of Feelings so that idea is 100% mine and was never mentioned in the movie. **

**Oh, and a huge thank you to everyone who reviewed and stuck with this story, you guys are the reason why my phone screen/computer screen has so many lip imprints. TMI but yeah, I'm overwhelmed :)**

**Anyways, just to tell you guys, this story is gonna come to an end soon but don't worry! I have a sequel on the way, yay!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hey guys, I'm updating again now almost everyday cause I just can't seem to stay away from this story! Also, I want to get it done as soon as possible because of the random ideas that just bowl me over when I least expect it, nowadays. Okay, I also do get inspired by your reviews but that's a whole different story LOL.**

**Anyways, without further ado, Chapter 18. Enjoy and review! Please and thank you!**

**Warning: This chapter contains a lot of feels and might make you feel depressed yet hopeful at the same time. I know I did.**

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_**Where we last stop:**_

_"Maybe Bunny's right," North said, over their skeptical and shocked expressions. "Think about it, Jack has been alone for almost 300 years and he still feels like he doesn't quite fit in with us; maybe Kayla really is the one for him," the jolly guardian replied, his blue eyes twinkling._

_The protesting guardians then fell silent at his words._

Meanwhile, Kayla was struggling to adjust herself to flying and the sudden impact of being an immortal. Even with her hold on Jack's hand she could feel her control slipping, figuratively and literally as she struggled against a wind current.

"Damn it!" Kayla yelled out in frustration as she pushed back her auburn hair which had a tendency to flap annoyingly in her face every 10 seconds.

Jack, noting her increasing impatience, stopped and held her close. "It takes some getting used to," the winter spirit encouraged as he gave her a hopeful smile. Kayla grunted and when she caught sight of the moon in the background, her anger visibly softened and she was transported back to the memory of her change.

She recalled voices yelling out her name as she fell, the impact not hurting as she turned her face to the moon. She then heard celestial voices call out as their beautiful echoes bounce back and forth in her mind, lulling her in to their magical depths.

Kayla recalled the feeling of seeing her life flash by in cinema-like fashion in which she was a viewer. Images of her parents flashed by, accompanied by birthdays, graduation, her grandmother's hugs and Jack. It was always Jack. His presence was like an accent in her life, from the time she was 4 until now. The flashes reached a crescendo as she felt cool waves of water like substance flowing down her arms and body, disconcerting yet comforting at the same time.

As soon as it started, the flashes and ice cool sensation ended, her mind slowly recharging back to life.

She could feel a cool grip around her hand as she silently groaned against the disorientating feeling. Kayla felt as if she was flung to space and back again as she shook her head and cracked open her eyes.

She recalled the searing feeling of happiness filling her heart when she looked up to find Jack smiling at her, relived, before she saw the strange looks on her fellow guardian friends faces.

In that moment of comedy, she had asked if Manny made her resemble Pitch, although her current look still baffled her.

"Kayla, are you alright?" Jack's voice gently coaxed her back to the present as she shook her head and gave him a small smile.

She mutely nodded as he grinned and took her in a bridal style, back to Burgess. She noted that the wind didn't bite into her skin like before and she smiled at that thought.

"Jack, what if she can't see me?" Kayla asked softly, her eyes trailing to the rapidly changing geography below them.

Jack was quiet; he really didn't have an answer for this. He just held her tighter and wished he could make her feel better.

Kayla then thought about the various friends she would have to leave behind now. Granted being immortal was something she had wanted but she still had a lot of loose ends to tie. And a lot of goodbyes not said. Her mind sobered at that thought but she steeled herself for the inevitable.

They arrived in Burgess as Jack ghosted over her front lawn, pushing open her window and they both landed at the same time, glancing at Kayla's old room.

The door to her room was fortunately opened and the both of them sneaked in downstairs only to be confronted by a tearful Mrs. Montgomery and two policemen in the kitchen.

"… Don't know where she could have gone, it's been almost a day and I tried calling her but she left her cell phone behind," Mrs. Montgomery sniffed as one of the policemen handed her a tissue which she accepted gratefully.

"Don't worry, Ma'am, we'll get to the bottom of this," the young uniform clad authority said as he and his partner walked out of the front door, accompanied by Mrs. Montgomery who was still sniffing. They wished her a goodnight before the door closed with an icy finality.

Kayla just watched the whole thing in stony silence.

Her grandmother then settled down on the kitchen table where she sat there, staring of into space as her lips were trembling.

Kayla approached her cautiously. "Nana?" she whispered, suddenly sounding like a younger version of herself.

Mrs. Montgomery sighed and rubbed her eyes, a few more tears escaping as Kayla laid her hands on her grandma's shoulders. They passed right through her grandma's shoulders.

"I can't believe it, first Jeremy and Kelly, now Kayla," her grandmother whispered as she sobbed, laying her head on the table and releasing all her pent up sadness.

Kayla felt a few tears leak from her hazel eyes as she frantically tried to grab her grandma, sobbing as her actions proved futile. She realized now that her presence was as real to her grandmother as wind only and she released an anguish sob.

Jack walked up to her and hugged her from behind, offering her comforting words but she was beyond redeemable.

Her grandmother's sobs seem to spur something in Kayla as she felt a tenacity and desperation to be seen claw into her very being.

"Nana, please! Believe!" Kayla cried, lifting her palms up to touch her grandmother and to her surprise, a blue bolt sprang from her fingertips, illuminating the room with blue light.

Her grandmother blinked as Kayla shook of the daze, the blue energy still clinging onto her fingertips. Jack was stunned into silence.

"Kayla?" Mrs. Montgomery asked, shock painted on her face as she turned to face the source of outburst.

"You can see me?" Kayla whispered as Mrs. Montgomery stood up and gave her granddaughter a hug.

"Where were you made me so worried, don't do that ever again!" her grandmother said through gritted teeth as she hugged her granddaughter fiercely.

"And what happened to your hair?" she asked, shock as she pulled back. Kayla squared her shoulders to tell the truth.

"Nana, I'm an immortal now," she whispered and her grandmother's features immediately distorted from caring to suspicious.

"Kayla, we are passed this now, your PTSD was suppose to be cured years ago, stop acting so foolish," her grandmother chastised, straightening her small figure to appear more commanding.

Kayla sighed with desperation. "Nana, look into my eyes," she ordered and her grandmother did, recoiling when she saw her brilliant hazel eyes.

"Kayla…" her grandmother was about to protest before Kayla shushed her with a blue light that seem to be illuminated from her palm.

"You think I'm lying now?" her granddaughter said archly as her grandmother slid onto the kitchen chair, unable to believe what was happening.

"I-I don't understand how…" her grandmother trailed of and Kayla gave her a symphatic look. She walked over to her grandma while taking her hand and tried explaining as best as she could.

"I was changed by the moon Nana; and get this, the Easter Bunny, Jack Frost, Santa, Sandman and the Tooth Fairy are all real, I'm not lying," Kayla said in a tenacious, willing her grandmother to believe.

"That's all-"

"The truth, Nana," Kayla said firmly, her hazel eyes speaking only the truth as she implored her grandma to believe in her.

Mrs. Montgomery hesitated for a minute. "What are you?" she asked softly, not willing to look her granddaughter in the eye.

Kayla hesitated. Jack put his hand on her shoulder as a show of support as she took a deep breath. "I don't know. Immortals who turn into spirits should die but I didn't die, so now, nobody has any idea who or what I am," Kayla admitted as her grandma regarded her shrewdly.

"Jack Frost… He's real too?" Mrs. Montgomery asked, genuinely curious as she pushed away a few loose strands of silver white hair behind her ear.

"Yes, Nana," Kayla confirmed. "I need you do something; just believe Jack Frost is here," Kayla whispered.

"But-"

"No buts just close your eyes and believe," Kayla replied in a soothing voice as Mrs. Montgomery exhaled and closed her eyes.

"Believe," Kayla whispered and unbeknownst to her, her hand which held her grandma's fragile old ones glowed a bright blue and Jack's eyes widened.

Mrs. Montgomery slowly opened her eyes and frowned when she saw no one but in her peripheral vision, she caught a flash of white and turned to find Jack Frost standing behind Kayla, his hand protectively on her shoulder.

Mrs. Montgomery gasped and nearly fell out of her chair if not for her granddaughters hand on hers. The whole room was filled with a stony silence.

"Hi," Jack said as he waved at Mrs. Montgomery. The old woman gingerly got up as she examined Jack.

"Nana, meet Jack, my boyfriend," Kayla offered weakly as Mrs. Montgomery scrutinized him.

"You're real," she stated in shock. Jack nodded weakly and smiled.

"So it is true," she whispered as she turned back to Kayla.

"I'm sorry, for all those years, for not believing in you and taking away your childhood," Mrs. Montgomery apologized to Kayla as she eyed her granddaughter in a remorseful way.

Kayla smiled as her eyes filled with tears. "It's okay Nana, I forgive you," she said and pulled her grandmother into a hug. I'm really going to miss her, Kayla thought wistfully as she pulled back to look her grandmother in the eye.

"There's one more thing, Nana," she said, averting her eyes to Jack who silently mouthed at her to tell the truth.

"I- I'm not coming back, ever again," she whispered as she took in the pained look on her grandma's face.

"It's just, nobody can see me now and I'm good as dead and so far, you're the first who can," Kayla said as sincerely as she could.

"What do you mean?" her grandmother demanded in a hushed whisper, her brown eyes that were so similar to Kayla's dad imploring her.

"It means that I can't visit often and everybody would think I would have died… I can't become human again Nana," she whispered that last part as her face crumbled. _I must be strong_, she reminded herself.

Mrs. Montgomery fell quiet as she observed her granddaughter.

"Okay"

"What?" Kayla asked, shocked.

"Okay, I accept it, if being… This makes you happy, and then it can make me happy," Mrs. Montgomery said as she offered Kayla a weak smile.

Jack looked disbelieving too, as if he couldn't believe what she was saying.

Kayla's face lit bright as the full moon outside as she excitedly grinned at her grandma. "Are you sure?" she asked as her grandmother nodded again.

"I'll just tell them that you probably ran away and throw a façade about how sad I am," Mrs. Montgomery said as if it was the most normal thing in the world and she wasn't discussing about her granddaughter's death. "What's done is done," the old lady said finally as she shrugged her small shoulders.

"You're one cool grandma," Jack blurted out with wide eyes and Kayla just burst out laughing at his wide eyed stare. Even Mrs. Montgomery cracked out a smile.

"And you, Jack, better take good care of my granddaughter, heavens knows you're the only one she has right now," Mrs. Montgomery said as she eyed a flushed winter spirit and Jack nodded, grinning.

Kayla knew then that this was one loose knot finally tied after 12 years.

"We best get going, we need to go back to the North Pole and tell North about my latest power development," Kayla admitted as her grandmother's eyes grew big.

Mrs. Montgomery opened her mouth as if to ask but she quickly snapped it shut, preferring the term _ignorance is bliss._

"You will visit me, right?" her grandmother asked hesitantly.

Kayla nodded, and hugged her grandma again, needing no words to show how much her grandmother's question had affected her.

Mrs. Montgomery gently let her granddaughter go as she turned to the silent Jack Frost and out of the blue, gave him a motherly hug. Jack's eyes widened and he resisted the urge to flinch. He laughed and hugged her grandmother back affectionately, feeling himself forgive the old woman after all those years. He guessed this must be her apology or something.

"Take good care of her, Jack and both of you, please, be safe," Mrs. Montgomery said as she ushered them out of the door.

Kayla turned to her grandma and smiled. "Take care, Nana," she said and together, she and Jack flew out of the house, hands held together as Kayla turned back to blow a kiss at Mrs. Montgomery.

The old lady looked up at them with eyes full of wonder as she laughed and waved goodbye to the both of them. Jack and Kayla waved back and without a second's hesitation, they flew off.

Kayla had tears in her eyes as she rapidly wiped them away, feeling this overwhelming feeling of bittersweet.

Jack held her hand tighter as he gently carried her in his arms as they made their way to the North Pole. "At least she took it well," Jack told his beloved as he wiped a stray tear of her face.

Kayla nodded numbly as she let her head fall on Jack's chest and sighed in contentment.

Meanwhile, in the North Pole, North was frantically searching his Workshop's library for that special book.

It's got to be here somewhere, the huge Guardian of Wonder thought as he searched relentlessly until he found the book he was searching for. He grinned in triumph as he noted Bunny, Tooth and Sandy's presence behind him, their anxiousness radiating from them.

"Well, mate?" the Australian asked as he nervously twitched his ears. North didn't answer as he carefully flipped the book's fragile and yellowed pages, searching for the text that would give them an answer about their latest addition to the Guardians.

"Ah, here it is!" North's booming Russian accent shocked the Guardians who had gone into a silent thought filled lull.

"_Ever since the Dawn of Time, there had been numerous creations of Feelings by the great Tsar Lunar who only transformed them if he found their soul worthy and exceptional. Feelings are incredibly rare and once found, often signifies a dire shift in events. Feelings often embody a human emotion and are_ _known as catalysts for the supernatural_," North finished as he looked at the other guardians who had varying degrees of shock on their faces as they absorbed what he said.

"But, there hasn't been another Feeling for almost 1070 years," Bunny said in a gasp as Tooth gave him a horrified look.

"What does this mean?" the Guardian of Memories asked as her wings bristled nervously.

"It means, we need to see Kayla as soon as possible, to warn her and tell Jack the truth. Everything might change as we speak," North said as he looked at the moon outside his workshop in silent wonder.

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**This chapter was inspired by Snow Patrol's 'The Sunlight Through The Flags'. I don't know why, but Snow Patrol is making me so darn inspired to write whenever I hear their songs.**

**A huge thank you to all who reviewed my story! I wanna give you guys a Jack Frost figurine or something... But I only have one. Heh.**

**And I hope you guys understand more about Feelings now from North's book excerpt.**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review!**

**5 reviews before I post the next chapter :)**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hey guys! Oh gosh, I'm going to keep this A/N short as I have tons of school work to complete but I just wanna say, THANK YOU! I just found out I just hit a 100 reviews and I am beyond elated! **

**Thank you so much for your continued support and enjoy Chapter 19!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter and please, review!**

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Where we last stop:

_"But, there hasn't been another Feeling for almost 1070 years," Bunny said in a gasp as Tooth gave him a horrified look._

_"What does this mean?" the Guardian of Memories asked as her wings bristled nervously._

_"It means, we need to see Kayla as soon as possible, to warn her and tell Jack the truth. Things can't be good," North said as he looked at the moon outside his workshop in silent wonder._

Meanwhile, Jack and Kayla were currently on their way to the Workshop as Jack got Kayla to show him more of her new found powers. Kayla let a blue spark fizzle on her hand for the 45th time, smiling in amusement at Jack's grin.

"This is so flipping cool!" the Guardian of Fun said as he had a look of excitement plastered on his face.

Kayla laughed as she let a thoughtful expression grace her delicate features.

"Hey, I have something for you I manage to take when you were with your grandma," Jack said suddenly as Kayla whipped her head back from staring at the ocean beneath them. They were going at the speed of light and yet it felt like the Workshop was days away.

She glanced at him curiously as Jack took out a shining glinting object from his hoodie pocket.

Kayla gasped as she saw that it was her mother's diamond necklace with Jack's snow pendant hanging from it, looking ethereal under the moonlight. She halted to a stop as Jack followed suit.

She cautiously took the diamond necklace from him as she traced it with a light finger gently, in an almost adoring way.

Jack silently took the necklace from her as he pushed aside her auburn hair and fastened the necklace around her delicate neck. Kayla tried to suppress the shiver she felt at Jack's cold touch but failed and Jack smirked as he kissed the back of her neck before turning her around to pull her in a breathless kiss.

There it was again, that electric charge that felt like it could light up even the darkest night as Kayla pulled him closer and relished his cold lips against hers.

Jack pulled away from her with a mischievous look on his face as he mouthed "later" to her and gathered her in his arms speeding away to the North Pole. Kayla pondered in silence, her head still spinning from their passionate kiss.

"What do you think spurned my powers to suddenly show up?" Kayla asked as she looked up Jack, the wind whipping his white hair in messy disarray.

Jack thought about that for a while.

"Well, when you were desperate for your grandma to believe, you just shouted the word and kaboom, she believed in you. Although the flashing blue light was epic," Jack said honestly, feeling happy that he had coaxed a smile out of her.

It all suddenly made sense as the thought came crashing up on her.

"Belief!" Kayla cried as she leaped out of Jack's arms and halted in front of him. Jack looked down to see that they were hovering over the snowcapped mountains of Russia.

"Pardon?" the winter spirit asked in confusion.

"I can manipulate people's belief," Kayla whispered again in awe as Jack's face took on an awestruck glow.

"You don't say," Jack muttered as he looked at his beloved with wide eyes. The power to manipulate belief was a very powerful one indeed.

"C'mon, we have to get to North right now," Jack said as he held her close. "Hang on," that was all the warning Jack had given Kayla as he launched himself in the air, manipulating the winds so that he was sailing on them with maximum acceleration. Almost supersonic like.

Kayla opened her mouth to scream, cry, or shout at Jack, _whatever_, but it never came. Before she had even realized it, they were flying in North's Workshop, past a shock yeti who was sneaking some candy canes, to land in front of the guardians who looked up sharply with shock.

"Kayla can manipulate people's belief," Jack said, sounding a little out of breath as he put down a windswept and dazed Kayla.

The guardians were silent for a moment as they looked at their youngest member in shock.

"What I tell ya," Bunnymund said in a deadpanned voice as he narrowed his eyes at Kayla. She shook the daze of as she stared at him back.

"Kayla, Jack, sit down, please, I need to explain to you," North said as he ushered the two teens down to sit on the couch where Tooth made way for the both of them as she wrapped a colorful arm around Kayla supportively. Kayla smiled at her pseudo sister in appreciation.

North handed them a book which Kayla noted looked old and battered, the spine hanging of its pages as she took in the cover.

On it was a picture of the moon, luminescent and bright. The name on the book simply read 'Immortals Index' which was written by Mother Goose.

Kayla wrinkled her forehead. _Mother Goose?_

North opened the desired page as the two teens sat about reading the passage which his finger was indicating.

They finished it and looked up at North with confused blue and hazel eyes, before sharing a look with each other.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Kayla asked, perplexed at the turn of the night's events.

"It means that you are a Feeling, Kayla. A human turned into the spirit by the moon, without the need to sacrifice their lives," North said slowly, noting that she seemed to be absorbing this information.

"You embody a human emotion, and have powers which are the catalysts to our world," North explained his tone solemn.

Kayla looked at him in a way as if to ask him to explain more.

"For example, on Halloween, there would be love of tricks or scary feats if it isn't for the Feeling of Fear and the Feeling of Fun. As I said, a catalyst to _human_ emotions," North said in his scary cool voice.

Kayla gaped, finally understanding his meaning. She was a Feeling.

"But, it is extremely rare for a Feeling to be created unless Manny deems them worthy or… There is going to be a major change in the supernatural world, and it's not going to be positive," North said, looking at everyone in the room with an un-North like steely gaze.

"Which means-" Jack trailed off.

"Kayla's transformation wasn't an accident or mistake. Something bad is going to happen sooner or later," North replied, his unwavering blue gaze scrutinizing the looks of shock on the teen's face.

"You mean to say… I'm like a bad omen or something," Kayla whispered, already knowing the answer to that.

North just nodded his head sadly. "Though we don't know when that major change is going to happen, it might be tomorrow, or a 1000 years later, we don't know, but for now, let's just keep a lookout shall we?" North suggested, his tone returning to that gruff yet playful Russian accent he always had.

Kayla nodded, feeling oddly relief that this discussion was over. Sandy motioned to Kayla with the word 'power' above his head, looking excited and relieved.

North laughed his belly laughed as Bunny smirked. "Alright then, let's see her new powers!" North said festively as Kayla grinned and got up.

Tooth also stood up as her wings hummed excitedly, her colorful head bobbing up and down. "Ooh! Yes, Kayla's powers," she said excitedly.

Kayla gave her full concentration as she felt the muscles of her hand obey her will, stretching to accommodate the surge of power flowing through her veins from her heart as a huge blue spark emerged from her hand, blinding the guardians.

They blinked after the show as they each tried to form what to say.

"Crikey, I hope she didn't turn make me believe I was a maggot!" Bunnymund exclaimed as the others laughed at his mock panic expression.

"Kayla, that was amazing!" Tooth said as she grinned at Kayla. The Feeling smiled back at the Guardian of Memories, happy that she found her powers amazing. Sandy was excitedly gesturing how amazing that was, using the sand symbols above his head to portray how he felt.

Jack grinned as North hooted.

"Kayla was that brilliant," North's Russian accent bellowed out as he thumped the Feeling on her back. "I know this may be sudden-" the huge Guardian of Wonder started.

Kayla felt herself tense up at his words, bracing herself for what he was about to say.

"- but would you like to join us Guardians? I know you're not technically one but your powers are amazing and it would definitely be a great help to us. So, will you?" North asked eagerly as Kayla was taken by surprise at his request.

She looked at the others as their faces varied on happiness, awe and wonder. Lastly, her eyes fell on Jack as he smiled at her encouragingly, his cyan eyes wondrously hopeful.

"Heck yeah," Kayla said as she grinned.

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**It's hard to believe. The story is almost coming to an end. It would probably be one or two more chapters and then Winds of Change would be over. **

**Anywayy, I still haven't figured out what is the best name for my sequel but I have already decided on 'Fates Align: Winds Of Change Part 2' or should I just go with 'Fates Align'? Smmh.**

**A huge thank you for everyone who reviewed and to theshadowlight, if you're reading this, thanks for the prompt, I'll try to see if it's fit for the sequel. **

**Thanks for reviewing!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please, review!**

**6 reviews before I post the next chapter :)**


	20. Chapter 20

**This is it guys, the last chapter of Winds of Change. I'm going to keep this A/N note short and just for the sake of old times and the ending of a story;**

**Thank you for your support and please, leave a review!**

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_Where we last stop:_

_Kayla felt herself tense up at his words, bracing herself for what he was about to say._

_"- but would you like to join us Guardians? I know you're not technically one but your powers are amazing and it would definitely be a great help to us. So, will you?" North asked eagerly as Kayla was taken by surprise at his request._

_She looked at the others as their faces varied on happiness, awe and wonder. Lastly, her eyes fell on Jack as he smiled at her encouragingly, his cyan eyes wondrously hopeful._

_"Heck yeah," Kayla said as she grinned._

Tooth squealed as she flew and hugged Kayla in a tight embrace.

"Tooth, can-can't breathe," Kayla managed to wheeze out as Tooth sheepishly let her go.

Jack then bounded up to her and gripped her hand, causing the newly recruit guardian to flush and look at her beloved's happy cyan gaze.

Bunnymund, North and Sandy then came up to her as they each offered congratulations on her choosing to join them.

"Do you think Manny is alright with this?" Kayla asked suddenly, fearful that the ancient guardian would disapprove of their choice.

North scoffed. "Nonsense, you're of great help and we could really hone your powers for good, ja? Why wouldn't Manny not want what's best for children across the world?" North's logical answer caught Kayla of guard yet made her feel more comfortable.

"Oh, that reminds me," the huge Russian said as he ambled over to the doorway of the globe room, gesturing for Kayla and Jack to follow them.

They dutifully followed him as they kept silent. Bunny offered Kayla a small smile before they disappeared from the room.

North led them up a staircase which neither of them had ever explored before. The two lovers passed a look of curiosity as they followed North.

They passed a series of closed wooden doors that looked rustic, before North reached the end of the stone slab covered hallway, facing the two spirits with a happy glint in their eyes.

"Welcome to your new room," North said as Kayla gave a confused look before oohing at the sight before her.

The 'room' which north had given them looked more like a two story house, complete with furnishings that suited the theme of his workshop. Warm and rustic to the point of feeling almost like home.

But the best feature of all was a huge glass window near the living room which overlooked the frozen lands of the Arctic; the scene looking like it came straight out of a winter painting.

"You're giving us a room?" Jack asked his tone awestruck.

North laughed. "It's more of a small house? I thought the both of you might need a room to yourselves now that Kayla is going to be permanently here, and of course Jack, you needed space of your own too," North explained gently as Jack swallowed back the sudden wave of emotion.

Nobody had ever extended their home for him. Ever.

Kayla turned around and wrapped her arms around North's huge waist as she thanked him gratefully. North got caught off guard but nonetheless reciprocated her embrace back, a look of fatherly warmth gracing his face.

"Alright you two, I'll leave you here to your own but please, this room isn't really sound proof and can't really contain sounds of strenuous activity," North said cheekily.

Jack's jaw dropped.

Did North, _the Santa Claus_ just tell a dirty joke?

"How…?" Jack asked his mouth still agape.

North gave a booming laugh. "Oh, Jack, it's really quite obvious isn't it?" he laughed again and left the two teens, flustered and embarrassed.

He turned to Kayla and as if on cue the both of them burst out laughing so much until they had to lean against each other.

"Gosh, I'm poofed," Kayla said and gave a small yawn as Jack noted this and spontaneously carried her to the bedroom, which was located up the flight of stairs.

Kayla noted that the floor upstairs looked the same as below, with wooden carvings, warm lighting and a whole lot of red and green, though not as luxurious as the floor below.

"We're gonna have to do something about the paint job," Jack muttered as he gently deposited Kayla onto the bed, his cold hands lingering around her waist before Kayla rolled her eyes and pulled him upon her so that they both flushed against each other, staring into each other's eyes in unconcealed admiration.

"Who would've thought huh?" Kayla whispered as she traced his lips with one of her fingers as Jack hummed in content.

"Manny works in funny ways," the winter spirit replied as he planted a soft kiss on her lips, feeling the same spark of electricity when they first kissed above the ocean. The two immersed themselves in a passionate kiss, breathless.

Jack pulled back, panting lightly, his eyes holding a mischievous grin. "What's say you we try out how sound proff this walls really are?" the winter spirit asked evilly.

Oh, how they tried.

After a bout of passion induced physical activity, the two spirits laid against each other, content and blissful.

"Hey, what's say we go for a flight?" Kayla asked out of the sudden, pulling herself to look up at Jack, her auburn hair framing her face like a halo.

Jack gave a happy laugh as he pulled his beloved up and the both of them got dressed.

"Just what I was thinking too," Jack said as he enthusiastically dragged Kayla down the steps and the two of them inspected the huge glass window.

Jack tried the lock and the window swung open noiselessly, the cool Arctic night inviting and soothing.

On instinct, they held each other's hand and leaped out to the night sky, soaring and laughing at the weightlessness they felt.

Kayla admired how her body seemed to be adapting to flying as she zipped around Jack, the night stars bright and beaming.

It was surreal. She felt as if she was swimming in an ocean of stars.

Jack gently held on her hand again, hovering to admire the stars with her.

With a slight tug, Kayla turned to look at Jack and he gestured at her to follow him to a nearby town which he frequented often when he was around the North Pole.

Kayla soundlessly glided up next to him as they saw the rapidly changing geography below change from rocky terrains and snow capped mountains to valleys and sprawling icy hills.

Jack looked down and saw town, lighted up against the Arctic night like a welcoming beam of light. He silently lifted his staff and a blanket of light snow fell upon the villagers, giving the village a more ethereal feel to it.

"… It's snowing again… Gosh, it's so cold… Can never go anywhere with this snow…" were the voices of complaint that could be heard from the villagers as they grumbled at the sudden weather change.

Kayla turned to look and frown at Jack who in turn just shrugged as if to say, _I get this all the time._

She lifted up her hands, spurned by a sudden idea and a wave of blue light illuminated from both her hands, covering the village in an angelic blue glow. Kayla smiled at the now familiar feeling of warmth her powers seemed to leave whenever she used them.

The both of them silently looked down as they saw the radical change unfolding beneath them. The villagers were not complaining anymore and the children in the streets gave happy shouts as they ran in the snow, ignoring their mother's pleas for them to stay close.

Even the adults were staring at the children in wonder, eventually laughing and enjoying the freshly fallen snow on their heads.

Jack turned to Kayla with wide eyes as she gave him a small smile. A strange thought niggled in his mind as he put the sequence of events together in his head.

"Faith," Jack whispered as Kayla turned to look sharply at him, tearing her happy gaze away from the children enjoying the snow night.

"Pardon?"

"You can influence people's faith, not believe,_ faith_" Jack stated and he watched as Kayla's face registered what he said, her hazel eyes growing wide.

"You're right," the Feeling whispered out in awe as she stared at her palms.

"I can influence faith… I can influence faith!" she shouted that last part out as Jack grinned at her. She raised her hands one more time as she let another blue wave light up the village and sounds of laughter could be heard from below.

"I'm the Spirit of Faith!" she exclaimed and flew to Jack, tugging his hand as they both flew away from the village, laughing and zipping around each other in delight.

Kayla looked to the moon and grinned as she and Jack flew of, spreading snow and the spirit of faith together wherever they went.

_Is this a happy ending? I don't know, but for now with the wind blowing in my hair and Jack beside me, I_ _can probably say this is_, Kayla thought as she soared through the starlit night sky, her hand firmly grasping Jack's who was mirroring her grin.

The moon glowed brightly down on the two teenagers as Manny smiled from above. Tsar Lunar then shone his rays down, illuminating the night of the Earth as he rejoiced with the young Feeling and her beloved Winter Spirit, knowing that he had great plans for them.

_Oh, Kayla and Jack, your story is far from over_, the ancient guardian thought with a smile on his face.

**THE END.**

* * *

**Wow, the last Author Note for Winds of Change.**

**First of I would like to thank each and every one of you for your continued support of Winds Of Change. Every single one of you has made my day with your continued presence with this story and for also motivating me to be the best writer I can be. **

**Honest to goodness, I never thought my story would've made it this far but once again, I would like to say a huge, big, heart shaped, frostbitten;**

**Thank _you_.**


	21. A Little Note

Hey guys! So I've been getting lots of e-mail updates saying how you guys favorite/followed Winds Of Change even though it's basically finished (don't worry, I'm still thankful that you guys love WOC).

So, this random note is to just tell anyone who's interested to check out my new story 'Fates Align' which is basically a **continuation** of WOC just that it's set one year later. So, yeah, I have great plans for 'Fates Align' and 2 more new fanfics (still in progress) so if you guys love WOC, you'll deff love what's in store for Fates Align :)

I guess that's all that I have to say and thanks for supporting, guys!

xoxo teeceecee


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